


Something Wild To Run With

by samoosifer



Category: Shameless (US)
Genre: Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Soulmates, Enemies to Friends to Lovers, F/F, F/M, Gallavich, M/M, Other, Physical Abuse, Romantic Soulmates, Shameless Big Bang, Shameless Big Bang Round 5, Soulmates, Soulmates AU, Teacher!Ian, ian x mickey au
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-06-10
Updated: 2016-06-10
Packaged: 2018-07-14 05:31:17
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 10
Words: 47,160
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7155638
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/samoosifer/pseuds/samoosifer
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>“What we find in a soulmate is not something wild to tame, but something wild to run with.”<br/>- Richard Brault-</p><p>>>Mickey Milkovich: Lincoln High's only math teacher, founder of the mathletes. Total babe.<br/>>>Ian Gallagher: Lincoln High's only Health teacher, full time basketball coach, full time douchebag.<br/>>>The two sculpted beauties must fight to the death over the schools funding almost every month for their own personal gain. But while dealing with troubles from the outside world, Ian and Mickey must put their petty feud on hold. Both eternally angry with each other, one fateful night the two must set aside their differences and work together to escape the nightmarish hell that is forced upon them. Will they make it? Only time will tell.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Hey! This is my first and last Shameless Big Bang. It was one hell of a journey writing this or some other cliche line writers use. 
> 
> Make sure you check out the graphics theunforgivngminute made [here](http://www.teamtchucky.tumblr.com/post/145705118124/something-wild-to) and you can go to her blog [here](http://www.theunforgivngminute.tumblr.com). Please enjoy!

"Have a good day at school, sweetie!"

Mickey pulled the finger at Mandy over his shoulder as she sped off, her loud cackles heard all the way down the road. He was only halfway down the path before Lucy had joined his side, falling into step with him and immediately chattering on about one of her student's essays. Lucy Knott was the only friend Mickey had at his job. Everyone knew his name from the past and were only too keen to stay away from him. Mickey would find another job but Lincoln High School was the only place that would hire him. 

Mickey hadn't meant to fall into teaching, it had just sort of happened. When he'd finally gotten out of his dad's house, he'd gone back to high school and had actually finished it. Somehow, he'd managed to get a degree that would allow him to teach the only thing he had ever been good at. Maths. He had always hated it when he was younger, then again, he'd hated every subject. But growing up the way he did, it was something he had been forced to be good at. It had just stuck. 

He and Mandy had finally tracked down their Uncle Ronnie to a lesser known area of Chicago and had stayed with him, recovering from the abusive childhood that came with Terry Milkovich. When Mandy had suggested to Mickey that he return to high school like her, their Uncle Ronnie had jumped on the bandwagon. Within six years he had finished it all, scoring the job at Lincoln High, and had moved out from Uncle Ronnie's into his own apartment with Mandy. She'd got a job as a kitchen hand and had quickly moved up the ranks, earning her place as sous chef and her own apartment with a waitress, Svetlana. Mickey had stayed in their apartment, too lazy to find a new one. It was below average but it was his own and he wouldn't have it any other way. 

For the first time ever, he loved his life. He enjoyed having one close friend, Lucy. She would often come over to Mickey's with Mandy's work friends from the restaurant she worked at. They would all cook and have a massive feast every now and then. Mickey loved the little coffee shop down the road from his apartment where he would get a coffee every morning. He loved his apartment and he loved his job. The only thing in his life that he did not love, that he hated with a burning passion in fact, was the asshole of a health teacher who also coached the basketball team, taking all the school's funding for travelling to different games all over the fucking country. 

It had been a long feud between the two of them, starting the day Mickey had formed the mathletes team exactly one year ago today. Mickey had been so furious. He'd worked so fucking hard to get enough people on the team so that they could compete in a competition. He'd gone to the principal, Jeff Glover, and talked about it with him, claiming the schools budget that month so they could travel to Milwaukee and try to win a trophy. But then Ian Gallagher had come along and fucked it all up. Mickey hated him so much. 

Unfortunately, all his constant arguments and showdowns with Gallagher were perceived in a different way by the student body. Mickey's favourite student, Cara Winters, had a flair for dramatics. When Mickey had first had a go at Gallagher, almost socking him in the face, it had been in front of Gallagher's class. Cara had been front row to witness the supposed 'sexual tension'. She'd started a rumour that Mickey was gay for Gallagher and vice versa. Now, the entire school, a few teachers included, were obsessed with the idea that all Mickey and Gallagher needed to do was get it on and all would be well. Mickey usually just ignored the comments, though. No way would Mickey ever think about Gallagher like that. Not in this universe, and not in any other. It was just the way of the world. 

"So, Mandy's keen for dinner tomorrow night. What do you say?" Lucy nudged him as they walked through the doors of the school, the halls slowly starting to fill with students.

"Yeah, sounds good." Mickey nodded. They both veered off down a hallway, heading towards the staffroom. Mandy had stolen his coffee earlier on and he was dying for another one. He'd stupidly stayed up late last night, binge watching the Captain America movies with Mandy. It had only succeeded in leaving him broken hearted, tired and desperate for more. 

"Oh, guess where Matthew has gone today." Lucy groaned. 

"Where?" Mickey asked hesitantly, bracing himself for the inevitable moan and groan about her husband. He loved Lucy so much, and he was always happy to help her with her problems, but sometimes he just got so fed up of most of them being marital problems. She just needed to leave the asshole already.

"He's gone to Washington on yet another business trip."

"Seriously? Again?" Mickey sighed. It was the third one in two months. In the beginning, Mickey hadn't thought much of it but for a company that sold cleaning products, three times in two months was a bit much for someone who was in charge of the production lines. 

"Yep. Short notice and everything. He said it's because they're training him up for a promotion. They usually give you the promotion before they train you though." Lucy sighed as they reached the staff room and headed straight for the coffee maker. It wasn't a fancy espresso machine, but it made a caffeinated drink which was good enough for Mickey. "I never know whether to say anything about it."

"You should." Mickey commented, taking down their mugs from the cupboard above the coffee maker. "Look, you're never going to stop wondering and worrying if you don't speak up for yourself. Just ask him. If he looks like he's being honest then forget it. But if something doesn't seem right, then maybe bring me and Mandy over for a good old fashioned snoop."

"I know... I just want to be able to trust him." Lucy mumbled, leaning against the bench while they waited for the machine to spit out the milk of the gods. 

"Well you obviously don't trust him already if you're having these doubts about him." Mickey put in, watching the way it seemed to hit her like she didn't even know about her distrust. "Why don't you take the kids to your parent's, Mandy and I will come over to yours tomorrow night and we can just do it then? We can have a few drinks and Mandy will wanna cook dinner and-" Mickey broke off as Gallagher walked in the room with the gym teacher, laughing obnoxiously loud about something. 

"Uh oh." Lucy snorted. "Here comes lover boy."

"He's not my- oh forget it." Mickey sighed when Lucy wouldn't stop smirking at him. He turned his back and poured out their coffees, unable to stand the sight of Gallagher, despite his tank top revealing large muscles pretty much everywhere. He had his leather jacket slung over his shoulder, proving just how much of a douchebag he was.

"Why don't you just go over there and touch him?" Lucy nudged him. 

"For the thousandth time, he's not my soulmate. That bullshit is just an old wives tale." Mickey muttered, handing her the hot coffee. 

"Thanks. You'll never know unless you actually touch him. Preferably in the nether region." Lucy waggled her eyebrows at him. "Just do the school a favor."

"Lucy." Mickey sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose. "You promised you would stop all that 'shipping' shit. It just eggs the kids on."

"Oh, shut up, you love it. Besides, soul mates or not, he clearly wants you. Just look at that smoldering look he's giving you." Lucy nodded, staring at him over her coffee mug. 

Mickey glanced over and rolled his eyes. "He's glaring at me. There's a difference." 

"You have to admit, he is a nice piece of ass." Lucy sighed, admiring the curve of Gallagher's ass. 

"Yeah, but he's also a fuckin' asshole that somehow manages to ruin every day for me and you're married. Come on, we need to actually do some work." Mickey said, dragging her away from the coffee maker and past Gallagher.

"Hey, Lucy." Gallagher gave her a warm smile before turning his gaze to ice and looking at Mickey. "Milkovich, you coming to the big game next week? It's gonna be a good one. Jeff went all out this time. I don't think we have any budget left this month for you and your mathletes."

Mickey sighed and turned around so he was walking backwards. "You know, somewhere out there is a tree, tirelessly producing oxygen so you can breathe. I think you owe it an apology." Before Gallagher could say anything else, Mickey was out the door, Lucy letting it swing shut behind her as she laughed her ass off. 

"That's the best one I've heard so far." She grinned at him. 

"Thanks." Mickey muttered, taking a scalding gulp of his coffee. 

"Hey, how many times do I have to tell you that soul mates are real? You just gotta be patient. You'll find the one to fill your world with colours." Lucy said, picking up the conversation from before.

"It's not fucking real!" Mickey cried out, throwing his arms out and almost spilling his coffee. "Look, I don't know anyone who has met their soulmate. It's just bullshit."

"You just gotta be open minded."

"If it's true, then how come Matthew hasn't brought color into your world? Whatever color even is." Mickey huffed.

"Because Matthew's not my soulmate." Lucy said simply, frowning when she realized what she had said. 

They came to a stop on the corner of the halls where they would split up. Mickey stared at her sadly before sighing. "I've gotta go. I've got tests that need marking. Think about what you just said, Luce."

"I'll see you at lunch, you loser." Lucy waved at him, heading towards her classroom, leaving Mickey to walk down the hall to his classroom alone. He was really starting to regret watching three movies in a row the night before. He had about sixty tests that needed marking for his first two classes and no time to do it in. He still needed to prepare for the day as well. It was going to be a hell of a day. Already, students were starting to crowd the hallways, getting in Mickey's way, making him more irritable. 

"Mr Milkovich!" 

Mickey turned around to see one of his seniors running up to him. "What's is it, Anthony?"

"Was that algebra homework due today?" He asked, puffing from running down the hall. 

"Next Friday. You've got another week." Mickey snorted at the relief on the kids face. "I'll see you in class." 

"Thanks, Mr Milkovich." He smiled and took off again, probably running to another teacher to talk about homework. 

Mickey resumed his walk to his classroom, almost getting his coffee knocked out of his hands by some rowdy students. He sent glares at them, silencing them all, and continued on his way. He pulled out his phone and brought up Mandy's number, hitting the dial button. She answered on the second ring. 

"What's up, Sir?"

"Mandy, I've been working here for two years. Do you really think those jokes are still funny?" Mickey sighed.

"Yes. What do you want? I'm busy."

"Whatever plans you have tomorrow night, cancel them. We're going to Lucy's for dinner and rifling through her husbands shit. He's gone on another business trip." Mickey informed her as he held the phone against his shoulder and tried to locate his keys, unlocking his classroom when he found them.

"Again? Where to this time?" Mandy sighed down the line.

"Washington apparently. But we're getting drunk and we're convincing Lucy to leave him or at least talk to him about it all." Mickey sat his coffee down on his desk and turned his computer on, staring glumly at the pile of tests just waiting to be marked. He hadn't even bothered to take them home the night before. He had just set himself up for failure.

"Finally... Alright, I'll tell Svetlana to give me a rain check. I'll see you tonight, Mick. Oh, wait! Before I forget, Uncole Ronnie called and wants to have dinner some time soon. He's back from his business trip or whatever so don't forget to organise something.”

“Why do I have to organise it? I have far too much work to do.” Mickey whined. 

“Because I'll end up forgetting and you know it. Just write it down in your little diary thing.” Mandy said simply. 

“It's a planner.” Mickey rolled his eyes, picking up a pencil and fiddling with it.

“Sure. Whatever. Just do it okay? Have a good day at school, sweetie!” 

"You made that joke this morning now fuck off." Mickey laughed, hanging up before she could come up with some other lame joke. He grabbed a marker and started writing instructions on the board for the students, saving him from talking to them straight away. He sat down and checked his emails. He had one from Jeff about a staff meeting that night which only succeeded in making his mood worse. He couldn't be bothered staying late. He had plans to have dinner with Mandy and help her with an ad for a new roommate now that Svetlana was moving in with Nika. No way was he going to the meeting. He'd just get Lucy to cover for him. He closed his emails and started marking the tests, waiting for his class to get here.

When the bell rang, Mickey dropped his pen and let out a groan, putting his head in his hands to stare at the papers. He was so unbelievably tired. He had no energy for this day. He only needed to get through four classes and then he could go home early. He'd just have to postpone the meeting with the mathletes. Except he needed to tell them about the competition in Milwaukee. 

"Fucks sake." He sighed. 

"You alright, Mr Milkovich?"

"Yep. Just got an awful headache and I'm exhausted." Mickey sighed, glancing up at Cara's smiling face, her long dreadlocks falling into her eyes. One of them was definitely dyed and Mickey just knew she would get in trouble for it at some point.

"Were you and Mr Gallagher up late last night?" She smirked, making the entire room burst into stifled laughter. 

"Okay, Cara, thinking we need to sleep together or get together or whatever the hell it is? I don't care. But when you make comments like that, it is completely inappropriate and rude. You and the rest of the school can think what you want but please just keep it to yourselves. Do you think you can you do that for me?" 

"Yes, sir. Sorry, Mr Milkovich." Cara rolled her eyes, muttering something under her breath that Mickey couldn't hear. 

"I'll see you after class." He said firmly. 

The rest of the class passed by in a blur of teaching and snapping at the idiots that got on his nerves which was, to be honest, pretty much everyone. At the end, he told Cara to tell the rest of the team about the meeting tonight, reminding himself that he once again had to go head to head with Gallagher over some funding for it. It shouldn't be too hard this time. The competition was only in Milwaukee so maybe they could do it but Mickey never knew when it came to Gallagher. He'd been working at the school one year longer than Mickey and in that time, he'd won the school a fuck tonne of trophies. Jeff had a stupid soft spot for him and always leaned towards him in the arguments. It was infuriating. 

Mickey found himself glaring at nothing the more he thought about it. Fucking Gallagher. With his stupid basketball team and his stupid long legs. His stupid freckled face and his stupidly smug smile. Mickey hated his fucking guts. He was probably in the gym now, training the basketball team while gloating that he had once again gotten funding for them. 

In actual fact, Gallagher was on the phone to his brother outside of his classroom, complaining about the one night stand he'd had last night. He had thought that he'd hit it off with Caleb, the two of them spending most of dinner talking about everything. The only hiccup in the evening had been when Caleb had snapped suddenly, asking Ian in a strained voice to stop complaining about Milkovich. Ian had caught himself from getting snappy right back at him and had refrained from mentioning him again. 

They'd had a good time otherwise and yet Caleb had skipped out early in the morning, before Ian had woken up. As disappointing as it was though, he was used to it. He was always going on as many dates as possible, meeting as many new guys as possible. When Fiona had told him about when she'd met Mike all those years ago, Ian had become obsessed with finding his own soulmate. He'd asked Fiona to describe what colours were but she just had no words. Ian had never seen her so happy after that. She worked with Mike at the weird cup company, Ian had never fully understood what they actually did, and Fiona had never once complained about Mike. Ian had thought that working in such close quarters with the one she loved would put a strain on their relationship but it just made it even stronger. Ian wanted that. He wanted that more than he wanted anything else in his life.

"Carl, he was just so cute and sweet." Ian sighed. 

"Did he leave a note?"

"No." Ian grumbled, glancing through the crack in the door to make sure his class wasn't starting a riot. Most of them were talking but they weren't being loud so Ian left them to it. 

"But he's got your number?" Carl queried.

"Yes. But I-"

"Then you need to stop being so needy, Ian. Maybe he couldn't find a piece of paper. Maybe he needed to rush off for some reason. The date was last night. At least give him a chance to call you.” Carl said, sounding amused over Ian's frustration. 

“I guess.” Ian said glumly. “How's Samantha?”

“Sam's fine.” Carl chuckled down the phone. “You can meet them soon. Fiona wants to have a big family dinner soon.”

“Make sure she texts me the details in advance. Last time I-” Ian broke off as someone started yelling in his classroom. “I gotta go, Carl. I'll see you tonight.”

“Bye, Ian.”

Ian hung up and burst back into his classroom dramatically, letting the door swing around and hit the wall. Every student jumped at the sound, turning around to look at him. “What the hell is going on in here?” Ian asked, taking in the scene before him. One of his students, Gayle, had a tampon dangling from her hand, she was shaking it in a guys face with a grin on her own face. 

“Sarah asked me if I had a tampon and Dave got grossed out.” Gayle grinned, still dangling it in his face. 

“Put the tampon down.” Ian sighed. This was his least favourite part of health to teach. Every time, without fail, all the guys refused to listen. They were always completely mortified to learn what a period was. It had been funny at first but when Ian had seen how little work the guys got done, he'd become completely fed up. “You guys are supposed to be naming all the parts of the female reproduction system.”

“Sorry, Mr Gallagher.” Gayle muttered, finally letting Dave be after dropping the tampon on his desk. 

“Mr Gallagher, tell her to get rid of it.” Dave pleaded desperately, looking at the tampon like it was going to jump up and attack him. 

“It's a bit of cotton on a string. You can put it in the bin yourself can't you?” Ian raised an eyebrow at him as he shut the door. He fought back a grin as Dave fought with himself before finally letting out a groan and picking it up, rushing to the bin, all his friends whooping and laughing at him. He dropped it in and let out a shudder, wiping his hands on his pants. 

“Seriously? You're really that grossed out about it?” Ian muttered as he sat back down. “Unbelievable. Get back to work, everyone.”

He loaded up his emails and accidentally let out a loud groan at the sight of one from Jeff about a staff meeting that night. No way was he going to that. He had plans to go to then gum straight after work and then meet up with Carl. He and Carl got drunk every Thursday night on account of neither of them having to get up early. He couldn't cancel on such short notice. Carl had probably already bought all the beer. Ian got rid of his emails and started going over his lesson plans for the day, wondering for the millionth time, why he even bothered anymore. His classes never bothered to do the work most of the time. They barely even listened to him. It was only when he was talking about sex that they would really listen. He stared at his schedule for another minute before shoving it aside and standing up. 

“Alright, times up. Let's mark it.”

Ian's day passed by pretty quickly, only slowing down when he was called to Jeff's office right before his last lesson of the day started. He gave the students some work to do, warning them not to do anything stupid, and left. He already knew what it was about. It had been exactly one year since he'd had this argument. It was the same competition in Milwaukee that Milkovich wanted to attend, coinciding with Ian's game in two weeks. Ian had won that time, and he was going to win this time. Fucking Milkovich. 

What kind of jerk just walks into a school and thinks he can start taking the funding for something as meaningless as a mathletes team? It wasn't even like Ian used the funds for ridiculous things. His basketball team were amazing at what they did. He had been training them since he had started working there. It was why he was hired in the first place. The health position had just been a bonus. Some of the team members had been trained by Ian and no one else. He was coaching them through their entire high school experience. It was because of his help that some of them had gotten into colleges on scholarships. If Ian was being honest with himself, they weren't going to get in for any other reason. They needed to win as many games as possible for the sake of their futures. But Milkovich couldn't see that.

Ian couldn't stand Milkovich. He was so fucking short and annoying. He was always insulting his team, questioning its use. Ian had put in so much hard work and Milkovich just ignored it. Maths was useless. Ian barely remembered anything except for the basics of maths. That was the subject that was useless. Milkovich was always going on about useless statistics about mathletes and their successes. It was infuriating. What was more infuriating was his stupidly sparkly eyes. They always shone like he knew something Ian didn't. Ian just wanted to punch his stupid face in. But he couldn't. He would lose his job if he did that. So Ian put up with him, trying to predict his every move. It had gotten to the point where Ian was finding out about different competitions Milkovich might take his team to, trying to stop him at every turn. 

It was a few months ago when the pranks had started. Ian had been in the staffroom, talking to the gym teacher about using the gym during free period or something. He'd had a coffee in his hand and Milkovich had deliberately walked into him right when he'd been taking a drink, succeeding in covering Ian's front in coffee stains. It hadn't been hot enough to warrant an ambulance or anything, but the shirt had been ruined and Ian had been stuck in a spare t-shirt from the gym. It had stunk and been way too small for Ian. After that, Ian had been desperate to get him back somehow. Humiliate him for a day the same way Ian had been. 

Ian had retaliated by squirting his drink bottle on Milkovich's crotch. Now that had been a fucking sight to see. Completely formal and professional up the top but wearing baggy shorts on the bottom. Revealing a pair of really nice legs and threatening to reveal more than that. Unfortunately for Ian, Milkovich's sister had shown up with a pair of pants for him halfway through the day but it had been worth it. Somehow Jeff put up with it all. Ian had no idea why. But it never seemed to get in the way of their actual jobs so they kept at it, constantly coming up with ideas to humiliate each other. Ian was due to retaliate soon but he had no idea what to do. Carl was usually good at coming up with something, another reason why Ian couldn't cancel on him. 

When Ian reached Jeff's office, Milkovich was in there already preaching about the importance of maths. Ian sat down in the last chair, scooting away from Milkovich to glare at Jeff. “It's not happening.” He looked at Milkovich and smirked. “What are you doing here? Did someone leave your cage open?”

“You know, it's kinda sad to watch you attempt to fit your entire vocabulary into one sentence.” Milkovich smirked back at him.

“That's enough you guys. Not even two seconds in and you're at each others throat. . . Ian, please see this from his point of view. You've won this argument last year. Mickey really wants his team to compete. If they win, they can compete in the regionals. If they win that, the prize is ten thousand dollars. Think what that could do for the school.” Jeff pleaded. 

“I can get you that easily.” Ian rolled his eyes, glancing at Milkovich who looked just as fed up as Ian felt. “Look, we're halfway through the season. We can't skip a game now.”

Jeff leaned forward in his chair and stared at Ian seriously. “I'm not asking you to skip the game. I'm asking you to downgrade the hotel and take a bus instead of flights.”

“Whoa, he gets a fucking hotel and flights?! All I'm asking for is transport and a meal. I'll pay for the meals myself if I have to!” Milkovich burst out, shooting Ian furtive glares from the corner of his eye. 

“That won't be necessary, Mickey.” Jeff shook his head. “Ian can handle this.”

“My team needs a good night of sleep and time to practice. They won't get that if we spend all the time driving and sleeping in shitty beds at some shitty motel.” Ian sighed. They would actually be okay if they did what Jeff was asking, he had confidence in his team, but he didn't want Milkovich to win. No way.

“Ian, be reasonable.” Jeff sighed. “I'm getting sick of this stupid feud you two have. I have more important things to do than dealing with you two childish idiots.”

“What, writing your erotic novel?” Ian smirked as Jeff's face darkened. Milkovich actually let out a short laugh, stopping himself immediately. 

“Jeff, please. These kids are constantly bullied for exceeding in this subject. Giving them this would help them with their confidence and give them something to be proud of. We'd be gone-”

Ian scoffed loudly. “Constantly bullied? Is your ass jealous of the amount of shit that just came out of your mouth? Cara Winters is your fucking team captain. She is literally the most popular girl in school, you fucking idiot.”

“You're the fucking idiot.” Mickey snapped.

“Jeff, he's just doing this because he hates me. Don't let my team fail for his stupid feelings.” Ian turned back to Jeff who was watching them with interest. 

“Oh, come on. I don't hate you, Gallagher. Where'd you get that idea? Well, I mean, I would unplug your life support to charge my phone.” Milkovich looked at Ian, biting his lip as Ian's face flushed. “But I don't hate you.”

“Ian, out of all the schools funding for this type of thing, you do get the most of it. Just try and put yourself in Mickey's shoes. Try and see this from his point of view.” Jeff reiterated. 

“Believe me, Jeff, I would love to see things from his point of view but I can't seem to get my head that far up my ass.” Ian said seriously.

Milkovich stood up suddenly, his chair falling backwards from the force of it. Ian jumped up as well, getting ready for whatever he had to say. “Maths is fucking important. It's been proven that-”

“Maths is as useless as a knitted condom and you fucking know it.” Ian laughed. He turned and put his hands down on Jeff's desk and stared at him. “I can't back out anyway. The flights and hotels are already booked and paid for.” Ian shrugged. “Sorry, Milkovich.”

Milkovich let out a shout and pulled his fist back, about to take a swing when Jeff stood up as well and shouted over the both of them. “ENOUGH! I will not have physical fights between two grown men in my fucking office! Ian! I know for a fact that the hotel isn't paid for yet and neither are the flights! You can cancel the flights and fucking downgrade the hotel and the money will go towards travelling for the mathletes. The students will just have to pay for their own food.” 

“Fine.” Ian grunted. “But my team will have to skip another day of school to drive and we'll be staying two nights.”

“Whatever.” Jeff shook his head. “Now fucking apologise and shake hands like adults.”

“I'm not shaking hands with him. I don't want to catch anything.” Ian shook his head. “I need to get back to my class.” He sent one more glare of contempt at Milkovich before storming out, making sure to slam the door on his way out. He stomped as loudly as he possibly could down the hall, Milkovich leaving the office a few seconds later, all the way back to his class where the students were all yelling. 

“What the fuck- hell is going on?! What did I say?!” Ian shouted at them all. He slammed the door shut and sat down in his seat, glaring at them all as they hurried to get back in their seats and back to work. Ian spent the rest of the class shouting at anybody that even spoke, fuming about his encounter. Drinks with Carl could not come soon enough. 

*

“I just cannot fucking believe that he needs an expensive hotel and fucking flights for this shit! It's a fucking ball game!”

“Uh huh. Do you feel like beer or something harder?” Mandy asked, peering at the different brands of beer. 

“Harder. Seriously, who the fuck does he think he is? Why is he so intent on stopping me from helping some fucking students acheive something?” Mickey complained, blindly following Mandy around the store. 

“Mmm I know. Rum? Vodka?”

“Mandy, are you even listening to me?” Mickey asked, pulling her thoughts away from the alcohol. 

“Yes, I am. You said some things, he said some things. You almost fought but someone stopped you.” Mandy shrugged and went back to the bottles of rum. “It's the same shit every time, Mickey.”

“No, Mandy, it was different this time. He fucking takes flights and goes to hotels. It's not fucking fair.”

Mandy stood up straight and faced Mickey with a glare. “Do you know what's really not fair? Meeting up with my brother under the pretense of having a fun night writing joke ads for a new roommate and instead getting this bubbling cauldron filled with hatred for some douchebag he works with. Like, you haven't even asked me about my day. You've been going on about Ian since you fucking picked me up.”

“Sorry, Mandy.” Mickey mumbled, actually feeling ashamed. “How was your day?”

“It was good, thank you for asking. I got to try out being head chef for the lunch rush. I think Nika is going to open up another restaurant soon and make me head chef.” Mandy said happily. 

“Mandy that's so great.” Mickey smiled at her, picking up a bottle of Jack Daniels randomly. 

Mandy opened her mouth to say something but her eyes darted behind Mickey and her face fell. “Jesus, I'm never going to stop hearing about Ian, am I?”

“What? I didn't say anything.” Mickey said, setting the bottle back on the shelf. 

“No, he's here.” Mandy nodded over her shoulder to the door tinkling behind Mickey. 

He turned around and let out a groan. “For fucks sake. Let's just get something and leave.”

“Not that easy.” Mandy sighed, fading into the background as Gallagher spotted Mickey and walked up to him, his friend trailing behind. 

“Milkovich. Just my fucking luck to run into you.” He stared Mickey down, disdain practically dripping off of him. 

“Look man, this is my regular store. You can fuck off.” Mickey glared at him. 

“Look man, this is my regular store. You can fuck off.” Gallagher mimicked him childishly. 

“Oh, grow up.” Mickey snorted, going to turn back to Mandy. 

“You may have won that round with Jeff but I swear to you, I'll get you back. I already know about the competitions next month. You're not gonna go to them.” Gallagher smiled at him cheerily. “Every time you want to organist something? I'll get there first.”

“You wanna fuckin' go?” Mickey demanded, stepping closer to Gallagher. 

“Let's fucking take this outside, see where it gets you!” He puffed out, getting right in Mickey's face so that their noses were almost touching. Ian was flexing his muscles hard but Mickey was confident he could take him. He'd over analyzed his strength and knew that with his upbringing, Gallagher would be no match for him. 

“You couldn't hit water if you fell out of a boat!” Mickey snorted. 

“Ian, not here you fucking idiot.” His friend growled, placing a hand on Gallagher's shoulder but he was shoved off. He glanced at Mandy, the two of them sharing a look of mutual frustration. “Look, can we please just go somewhere else?” He asked, trying to drag Gallagher away again.

He was once again pushed roughly away by Gallagher. “In a minute, Carl. Listen, Mickey.” He said, shocking Mickey by using his first name for once. “The guys on my team, they're not the smartest of people. They need this to actually get somewhere in life. That's why I need to go to every game. This isn't just some extra curricular activity or a hobby to them.”

“Yeah, you're right about that.” Mickey rolled his eyes. 

“What do you mean by that?” Gallagher narrowed his eyes at him. 

“Just reminding you that there is a very fine line between a hobby and a mental illness.”

“Alright, that's it.” Carl burst out, pushing past Gallagher and swinging his fist at Mickey. 

“Whoa! Carl! Calm down!” Gallagher yelled as Mickey stumbled backwards from the hit, pain blossoming through the left side of his jaw. 

“He doesn't get to say shit like that!” Carl growled, breathing hard. 

“Are you okay, Mickey?” Mandy asked, steadying him while he flicked his tongue out to taste blood.

“Fine.” Mickey grunted. 

“Carl, I work with the guy. You can't go attacking him like that. I could get in serious trouble.” Gallagher said seriously, pushing him away. “Let's just get what we came for and go.”

“Mickey, come on.” Mandy tugged on his arm. 

“I can walk.” Mickey grunted, shaking her off and wiping his chin with his sleeve. “Can we just leave?”

“Well, what the fuck do you want to drink?” Mandy asked angrily. 

“Vodka. Let's just get some mixers somewhere else.”

“Fine.” Mandy snapped. 

They managed to get their drinks without any more encounters with Gallagher, leaving the store with Mickey starting to calm down. Until he saw his car. There were scratches all over his fucking car. “What the fuck?!” He spun around to go back in where Gallagher was paying for his drinks but Mandy stopped him. 

“Mickey! There's nothing you can fucking do! You don't even know if it was him!”

“Bullshit! He knows my car, who the fuck else is it gonna be?!” Mickey glared at her. 

“Mickey, get in the fucking car and drive or I swear to god I will fucking kill you!”

Mickey glared at Gallagher for a few more seconds before letting out a shout and getting in the car. “He's going to fucking pay for this.”

“Whatever, just drive.”


	2. Chapter 2

*1 Year Ago*

“I'm so pleased you guys have given this a chance.” 

“Don't get too excited, Mr Milkovich. If it coincides with my derby practice then I'll skip it.” Cara sighed, picking at her nails, seeming to be disinterested in the entire thing. Mickey knew better though. She was fucking amazing at maths, top of the class, and she had jumped at the idea when Mickey had suggested it in private. 

“That isn't a problem. You can all just let me know about any activities you have outside of school hours and I'll work around it. We could even get t-shirts!” Mickey said excitedly at the group. “'The Lincoln High Mathletes.'. What do you think?”

“If we can come up with a better name, can we go with that instead?” Zoe asked, jumping down from the desktop. 

“Uh- yeah sure. We can make a vote on it.” Mickey nodded. “Right. You can all return to lunch or whatever. I'm going to talk to the principal.” 

“See you, milk man.” 

“Kevin, I swear to god.” Mickey sighed as the group all paraded out of his classroom. He smiled to himself before getting up from his desk and following them out, locking the door behind him, before heading down the halls to the principals office. Jeff's secretary was sitting at her desk, tapping something out on the keyboard. Mickey was ashamed to say that she scared the shit out of him. She reminded him of Morticia Adams but worse somehow. He asked to see Jeff and was told to wait in the seats against the wall like a fucking student. 

A student walked in and collapsed into a seat a couple down from Mickey, slouching almost all the way down so that his ass was barely even touching the actual seat. Mickey didn't teach the kid at all, had only seen him around the school a few times, but he knew how much of a problem kid he was. He was glad he didn't teach him. The student got to go in to see Jeff before Mickey, making him wait even longer. He didn't exactly have that much time left before his next class. He needed Jeff to hurry the fuck up.

“Mickey? You wanted to speak to me?” Jeff was suddenly calling him from his office door as the student stomped past, muttering under his breath. 

“Yes. Thank you, yes.” Mickey smiled, jumping up and rushing inside. 

“Now, what can I do for you on this fine day?” Jeff asked as they both sat down.

“I don't have much time before my next class so I'll get straight to it.”Mickey informed him, shifting slightly in the plastic chair. “I've got a group of students who are willing to create a mathletes team to represent Lincoln High in competitions. They're super excited and if they can win this competition that's coming up in a few weeks, then they'll qualify for the regionals.” 

“Oh wow, that's great, Mickey. It's good to see you're engaging the students in extracurricular activities.” Jeff smiled, pulling out his lunchbox. “You don't mind if I eat my lunch do you?”

“Go ahead.” Mickey nodded. 

“Unfortunately, I'm just not sure if we have the funding for it. Where would they be practicing? How long for? Where's this competition?” Jeff rattled off his questions, squirting a little sachet of ketchup onto his sandwich.

“Um, well, we can practice in my classroom once or twice a week after school maybe for an hour.” Mickey explained, making it sound like a question. He wish he'd prepared for this more. He had no idea how he was supposed to go about this sort of thing. “There's only five of them at the moment and they're going to come back to me with all their other commitments. The competition is in Milwaukee in three weeks. We'd just need a way to get there and back.” 

“Okay.” Jeff nodded, screwing up his face suddenly. “Eggshell.” He explained. He pulled open one of his drawers and pulled out a form. “I need you to fill this out for me so I can process it properly, and you need to create permission slips for the students involved. Any uniform costs will be split. The school will pay for half and the students have to pay for half. Umm... I think that's it.” Jeff smiled. “Congratulations, Mr Milkovich, you're a real teacher now.”

“Why does this make me a real teacher now?” Mickey snorted. 

“Well, most teachers seem to hate their jobs. But the ones that don't are the ones that organist these things. It's like a test and you finally passed it. I've been wondering whether you were going to crack and give up.” Jeff snorted, stuffing the last of his sandwich in his mouth. “I know who you are. Sort of. I know about your past and I gotta say, I'm impressed you've made it this far.” 

“Oh, I- well I- uh-”

“Don't worry. I'm not gonna fire you.” Jeff shook his head, tearing open a bag of Frito’s. “You can't help where you come from.”

“Thank you, Jeff.” Mickey nodded, looking down as a blush worked its way up his face. 

“Get out of here. Let me finish my lunch in peace.” Jeff waved his hand, relieving Mickey of the uncomfortable situation he had gotten himself into. 

“Thanks for everything.” Mickey smiled, getting up and fighting the urge to punch the air. He kept grinning to himself as he returned to his classroom, trying to think of a design for their t-shirts. He sat down at his desk and got started on the permission slip straight away, leaving the price blank for the time being. He'd need to speak with the kids first to find out what they were thinking. It was about ten minutes before his lunch break ended when his door burst open and a teacher he'd only ever seen a few times around the school stormed in, yelling about funding and kicking a desk. 

“Who the fuck are you?” Mickey demanded, cutting the guy off midstream as he took in how big his arms were. Shit.

“I'm the fucking basketball coach and the health teacher. Who the fuck are you?” He snarled in a blaze of fury.

“I'm- I'm the math teacher. What the fuck is going on? Why are you yelling at me?” Mickey asked, turning back to his computer screen. 

“Because you took my fucking funding for my teams new uniform! And for what? Some stupid maths competition? Fuck that!” Ian yelled, slamming his hands down on Mickey's desk to pull his attention back. He glared down at Mickey, doing his best to intimidate him but Mickey had dealt with worse. This was nothing. 

He glanced up at him before looking back at his computer screen, reading over the permission slip, fixing a couple of typos. “It's not my problem. Jeff said okay.” Mickey shrugged. 

“Yeah, because you fucking asked. You can't just waltz in and take-”

“Look, I'm no proctologist, but I know an asshole when I see one and frankly, I don't have the time or patience to deal with you. If you have an issue, then take it up with Jeff. He's the one that okayed it. I just asked. He said yes.” 

“I'm getting my funding back. Just fucking wait.” Ian snapped before leaving the classroom, slamming the door hard behind him. 

“Jesus christ.” Mickey muttered, shaking his head in shock. He saved the permission slip and started getting ready for his next lesson, writing instructions on the whiteboard for the students. They all started trickling in, slowly filling his class until the bell rang and the last few stragglers darted in. The class was going fine without interruptions until Mickey got an email alert from Jeff half way through.

Hi Mickey, 

Unfortunately, after discussing this with our basketball coach, Ian Gallagher, we will be unable to fund the trip for the competition. You are still more than welcome to get uniforms and start practicing, but your first competition will have to be put off another couple of months. Sorry to do this to you. 

Jeff Glover  
Lincoln High Principal

“What the fuck?” Mickey breathed out, glaring at the screen. “What the actual fuck?!”

“Um- Mr Milkovich? I don't think you should be swearing like that.” One of his students piped up. 

Mickey's head shot up to see all of them staring at him curiously. He closed his emails and stood up. “Just keep doing the work. If you finish those pages then turn over and start reading the next one. I'll be back soon.” 

Before anyone could protest or ask where he was going, Mickey left, almost slamming the door behind him. He walked down the halls in a blind rage, not even entirely sure where he was going, until he bumped into a student. “Hey, can you tell me where the health classroom is?”

“Uh, sure. Go down the end of this hall, turn left and at the end of that hall, turn right and you'll reach the gym. It's next door.” She said nervously.

“Great, thanks.” Mickey muttered, storming away in the direction she said. He couldn't fucking believe it. How much of an egotistical fucking asshole do you have to be to do that? As soon as Mickey saw him he was going to beat the living daylights out of him. Who the fuck does he think he is?! Mickey stopped abruptly as he realized where he was going with this. This wasn't him. He didn't do shit like that anymore. Besides, he could lose his job if he actually hit that smug fucking prick. 

He would just go inside, and ask to have a private word with Gallagher. That was it. He didn't need to get worked up or violent. He would just explain that it was his first time organizing something for the students and that he would really appreciate it if he could let the mathletes have this one. He'd see reason, right?

As Mickey walked down the quiet halls, he reasoned with himself and with Gallagher in his head, trying to imagine how it was going to play out. He had a strong resolve not to do anything stupid or irrational but as soon as he knocked on the door and saw Gallagher's smug face, it all went flying out the window, the incessant anger jumping back to the front of his mind. 

“Milkovich, what can I do for you?” He asked, smiling up at Mickey like the cat the got the cream. 

“You can give me back the funding for my mathletes.” Mickey demanded, forgetting all the fake discussions he had just played out in his head. 

Gallagher laughed and shook his head in mock amusement. “Yeah, that's not going to happen.”

Mickey strolled past the desks, ignoring the eyes of the students, and slammed his hands down on the desk just like Ian had in his classroom. “You can't just do this. I have every right to create this team and I have every right to use some of the schools funding for competitions!”

“If you have an issue, take it up with Jeff.” Gallagher smiled that stupid smile again, moving the freckles on his face around. 

“Oh, don't do that. Don't pull that shit on me.” Mickey snapped. “Why is your stupid basketball team's new uniforms more important than my mathletes?”

“Well, first off, a mathletes team is the lamest thing I've ever fucking heard. Second, the uniforms we have now are old and dirty and outdated. We need new ones in time for our big game next week. We've already put the order in. It's paid for already so there's nothing you can do about it.” Gallagher stood up and picked up his whiteboard pen, as if he was ending the conversation all together. Like hell he was.

“Jesus christ! You're a fucking asshole!” Mickey burst out, feeling like his head was about to explode. Why was this guy making him so angry?

“Can you get the fuck out?! Everyone else in here wants to learn. You need to learn that you can't just take my fucking money for my fucking team!” Gallagher shouted, his face flushing like crazy.

“Fucking make me.” Mickey smirked, standing back and folding his arms, looking as rigid as possible. 

“You wanna fucking go?” Gallagher growled, coming around to the other side of the desk, standing close to Mickey. 

Mickey spat out a retort that, no matter what the circumstances, whenever he thinks about it, he cringes and is full of shame and embarrassment. Later that night, when he told Mandy, she laughed at him like she'd never laughed at him before. Mickey couldn't believe it. He regretted the words the second he said them. Those dreaded seven words. 

“Do you even know who I am?!” Mickey laughed in his face. “Do you really wanna go down this fucking road?!”

“I don't give a shit who you are!” Ian snarled, taking another step closer so that their noses were almost touching. So close that Mickey could count Gallagher's freckles and feel his breath ghosting over his face. 

“Now kiss!” Cara interrupted.

Both Mickey and Ian turned, suddenly aware of the room full of teenagers watching them with fear and excitement. Cara, sitting at the front, was grinning at them gleefully. Mickey and Gallagher looked back at each other before Mickey shoved him away by the shoulders, taking a step backwards himself. 

“By the way, Cole has gone to tell on you guys.” Cara smirked, sitting back in her seat with satisfaction while they tried to calm themselves down. 

“Shit.” Mickey muttered, running his hands through his hair. 

“You guys should totally just kiss and make up. That was the hottest thing I've ever seen.” Cara said happily, scribbling things down on her notebook. 

“Really, Cara?” Mickey groaned. “Is that really appropriate?”

Gallagher's desk phone started ringing and Mickey immediately knew what it was about. He almost laughed as Gallagher's face contorted into nervousness and shame. He cringed as he picked up the phone and put it to his ear, pulling it away as soon as Jeff's yelling started echoing down the line. 

Gallagher hung up the phone and turned to Mickey, his head hanging in shame. “He wants to see us.” He muttered. 

Mickey nodded and walked off, not bothering to wait for Gallagher as he told his class what to do. He passed Cole on the way who looked just as nervous as Mickey felt. He had fucked it up so bad. Why did he let himself lose control like that? Gallagher might be kept on but Mickey, he had a criminal record. He'd even had to go to an anger management course when he'd been studying. There was no way he still had a job after this shit. Mandy was going to be so disappointed. 

Mickey reached Jeff's office and received a cold glare from his receptionist, directing him to sit down in one of the chairs. He'd been here not even an hour ago in the best mood. It was crazy how fast it had disappeared. Gallagher arrived a second later, getting the same icy look from Morticia. He sat down on the seat furthest from Mickey, refusing to even look in his general direction. If it weren't for their age, they would look like a couple of naughty school kids. Mickey was beginning to feel that way.

Jeff opened his door and silently motioned for them to come in, the room filling with tension as they sat down. Jeff returned to his desk and started typing on his computer, not looking at either of them. He clicked a few buttons before turning to the two of them, resting his head in his hands. 

“So, who can explain to me why I've had student come into my office, almost in tears, because two teachers are fist fighting in front of the class? Can you explain to me why you were both swearing in front of students? Hmm? Does either one of you want to explain the extremely unprofessional way this was handled?”

Both of them started yelling at the same time, fighting to be heard over the other, before Jeff all but screamed at them to shut up. He let Mickey go first so Mickey took in a deep breath and let it all out. 

“I know things got out of hand and I know it was really stupid of me to let this happen but he pushed me into it! He was being an asshole looking all smug and really cu- I just- I lost control.” Mickey bit off, only just managed to bite of the word he had been about to say. Even though he was very quickly beginning to hate Gallagher, it didn't change the fact that this man was the cutest yet somehow the hottest guy ever. He wanted him to bend him over a table while also cuddling him into the night. It was a new sensation for Mickey and he had no idea how to handle it. 

“With your track record, Mickey.” Jeff sighed. 

“We weren't even fist fighting. We were just arguing very loudly.” Mickey grumbled, angry at that stupid kid for fucking telling on them.

“Wait, Mickey? The Mickey Milkovich?” Gallagher asked incredulously, looking Mickey up and down. 

“What's it to you?” Mickey grunted, keeping his eyes on the floor as he prepared for the sarcastic comments of 'Shouldn't you be robbing a bank right now?' or 'How'd you get out of prison?'. It happened every time and Mickey should have been used to it by now, but it still hurt just a little bit. It was hardly his fault the way he grew up. 

“Shit. I think your sister used to date my brother. M- Mandy?” Gallagher looked at him curiously. 

“That's her.” Mickey nodded, still not taking his eyes from the floor.

“Yeah. Fuck, from what she told my brother, you guys had a pretty shit time growing up. Good on you for getting out of the Southside.” Gallagher almost laughed, sounding like he too had been through some shit. Then it hit him. Gallagher. 

“Oh, shit! You're Frank Gallagher's kid!” Mickey burst out, looking at him in a different light. “My dad would complain about him and your brother almost every fucking night.”

“No shit.” Gallagher snorted, giving him a weak smile. 

“See? You guys have already found a common ground. Now, shake hands and this can all be put behind us without me needing to take any further action.” Jeff interrupted, shattering the small moment of bonding. 

“Fuck no. I'm still mad at him.” Mickey shook his head adamantly. “I want the funding back. Why should my students have to miss a competition because the stupid basketball team needs new uniforms? How is that fair?”

“Look, I'd be happy to give it back but when Ian came to get the funding back, it's because he's already put the order in for the new uniforms. We can't ignore the bill for you.” Jeff said painfully, as if he was actually upset on Mickey's behalf. But he was just frustrated because he had to deal with the two of them. Mickey had seen that look before more than a few times. 

“See? I told you I'd get the funding back.” Gallagher smirked at him, straight back to looking at him like he was trash. At least now Mickey knew he was also trash. 

“Shut the fuck up, Gallagher. Your family tree's a cactus because every fucking one of you Gallagher's is a prick.” Mickey snapped. “I remember your piece of shit, family.”

“I could eat a bowl of alphabet soup and shit out a better statement than that, you fucking idiot.” Gallagher snorted and stood up. “We're done here, right? I need to get back to my class.”

“Actually, I've already got substitutes. I was going to suspend you both for three days to keep you apart, but it's the weekend in one day so I'm just sending you home today and you both have to stay home tomorrow.” Jeff sighed, pulling out forms from a filing cabinet behind him. 

“What?! But I need to train my team!” Ian protested, glaring at Jeff angrily. 

“Well you should have thought about that before you both started swearing and yelling at each other in front of students.” Jeff sighed, filling out the forms in a blur before shoving them at the two of them. “Sign them and get out of my school. I'll see you both on Monday.” 

Mickey snatched the sheet away and grabbed a pen from his pocket, signing it before giving it back to Jeff. “Do you want me to do lesson plans for tomorrow?”

“That would be very helpful, yes. You too, Ian.” Jeff called to him as he left the room. 

“Sorry, Jeff. Thank you for not firing me.” Mickey muttered before leaving the room. He walked quickly back to his classroom, ignoring the students looks of interest. The substitute teacher, someone Mickey had only seen around the school, was reading her book at his desk while the students pretended to work. 

“Oh, hi. I'm Mrs Knott. Uh- Lucy.” She smiled at him warmly when she saw him, jumping up out of his seat. “Everything all good now?”

“Not particularly.” Mickey muttered, pulling out a notebook to write instructions for the classes tomorrow. 

“Oh no. What happened?” She asked sounding genuinely concerned for Mickey's well being. 

“I just got suspended.” Mickey said not as quietly as he should have. A murmur of shock ran through the students as Mickey picked out which things needed doing tomorrow. 

“Oh shit.” Lucy breathed. “Are you okay? Do you wanna talk about it?” She asked quietly. 

“No, I'm fine. I just need to get these lessons planned for tomorrow and get off school property.” Mickey grumbled, more aggressively than was necessary. “Sorry. Didn't mean to get angry. I just- ugh, I just hate him.” 

“Hate who? Come on, let's go outside. You can get your frustrations out there.” Lucy nodded, tugging a reluctant Mickey out of the classroom. She shut the door behind her and pulled Mickey into a hug, ignoring his protests and struggles. “Just let it out. I know what it's like to need to vent right at that moment but being unable to. 

Mickey gave in. Something inside him just broke and suddenly the waterworks were going. He started crying about how hard he had worked to get this job and now he'd gone and risked everything because of one stupid hiccup. He blamed his dad and himself and fucking Gallagher. He cursed and groaned and cried until he felt like he couldn't anymore. Lucy just stood there, listening to him pour his pathetic heart out. She nodded and agreed and laughed and made Mickey feel better, even though she barely said anything. 

“This is my last lesson of the day. How about you hang around and we go get a drink afterward?” Lucy asked him, rubbing his arm soothingly. Mickey mumbled a yes under his breath and earned another warm hug that seemed to squeeze all the sadness out of him. 

“You drive, yes?”

“Yeah.” Mickey nodded, glancing down the hall as a door opened and a student walked out and away in the opposite direction. 

“Great. My husband was going to pick me up but I'll tell him I'm getting a lift with you instead.” Lucy smiled.

“Okay. I need to grab my things and call my sister first.” Mickey sighed, returning to the classroom with his head down so they couldn't see his face. He quickly scribbled down notes for tomorrow's substitute, grabbed his things and was about to leave when a student stopped him. 

“Mr Milkovich, is it true you and Mr Gallagher are sleeping together?”

Mickey's head snapped around so fast he could have sworn he heard it crack. “Who said that?”

The student raised his hand slowly, his phone held tightly. “It's all over Facebook.” 

“Wha- seriously?” Micky asked incredulously, dumping his things on his desk and walking down to the kid. “Let me see that.”

“Yeah.” He nodded, handing the phone over. 

Mickey quickly scrolled through the news feed, reading every status that contained his name and Gallagher’s. All of them were about their fucking fight and they were all calling it 'trouble in paradise' or 'lover's quarrel'. He handed the phone back and returned to his desk, thinking hard when one name came to mind. Cara fucking Winters. 

“Okay, all of you need to ignore that. It's not true.” Mickey looked at them all. They all looked very skeptical of his words. “It is true that Mr Gallagher and I had an argument in front of his health class and things got a little out of hand, but Cara is lying and exaggerating. We did not rip each others shirts off nor did we kiss. If I hear anyone talking about this again you'll have a week's detention. I'm sure you can take it from here?” Mickey smiled at Lucy who was holding back laughter very obviously. 

“Yep. Sure.” She snorted, letting slip for a second. 

Mickey grabbed his things and shook his head in disappointment. “I'll wait in the staffroom.” 

“See you soon, Mickey.” She smiled as Mickey's phone burst into life. 

He pulled it out of his pocket and smiled as Mandy's name came up on the screen. “Hey, I was just going to call y-”

“Why didn't you tell me you were sleeping with the health teacher?!” Mandy screeched, interrupting him by threatening to burst his ear drums. 

“Jesus, Mandy. You don't need to be that loud. I ain't a bat.” Mickey winced. “And how the fuck have you heard that shit?”

“There's a god damn video on YouTube of you and some hot teacher fighting in a classroom. It cuts off right when you go to rip each others clothes off apparently.” Mandy snorted. “I thought you had more class than a classroom full of kids, Mick.”

“Fuck you. That video is not accurate.” Mickey groaned, reaching the staffroom finally. “Can I come over tonight? I can explain it properly.” 

“Yeah, sure. I'll get us some drinks. You're lucky it's my night off.” Mandy said happily. 

“Thanks. Oh, I made a friend and she's gonna come as well.” 

“You made a friend?!” Mandy gasped.

“I know right? Go me!” Mickey said sarcastically as he collapsed on a squishy arm chair. “This has just been the worst day so please just- don't give me any shit.”

“Impossible. My wit is the only thing that can cheer you up. Let me know when you're on the way and I'll order dinner from work. I hope this friend of yours likes Italian food.” 

“She wouldn't be my friend if she didn't.” Mickey muttered. 

“I'll see you later, Mickey.” Mandy laughed. 

“See you soon.” Mickey sighed, dropping his phone into his lap. Half an hour passed before Lucy joined him in the staffroom, complaining about her husband kicking up a fuss over having to pick up the kids by himself. 

“It's not that fucking hard. He knows where to pick them up and there is leftovers in the fridge. He's not completely helpless.” Lucy grumbled. “You ready to go?”

Mickey nodded and struggled to his feet, feeling like the whole world was resting on his shoulders. They walked to Mickey's car while Lucy talked his ear off about her husband and two kids. The longer Mickey spent with her, the easier it was to talk to her. She asked about Mandy's job at the restaurant and Mickey's classes. In the hour and a half he'd known her, he already loved her. She was funny and kind and was already making plans to bring him over for dinner one night, saying he'd love her kids which Mickey highly doubted. He let her dream though. No need to squash those down. 

Mandy was busy dishing up food when they walked through the door, her table set and everything. Mickey introduced Lucy and they settled into an easy conversation about the food. It wasn't until they had finished their dinner and were relaxed on the couch when Mandy brought up the argument. 

“So, what happened exactly?”

“Well, you know how I wanted to start up the mathletes team?” Mickey asked, proceeding to tell her about the series of events. 

“I just need rough details of the argument. I saw most of it on YouTube.” Mandy sniggered. 

“Wait, there's a video?” Lucy asked gleefully. “I have got to see this!”

“It's still up on my laptop, hold up.” Mandy laughed, darting into her bedroom and returning with her laptop. Within seconds they were all watching from Cara's phone as Mickey yelled at Gallagher. 

“Jesus, is that really what I sound like?” Mickey groaned. 

“Do you even know who I am?”

Mandy burst out laughing. “I still can't believe you fucking said that, you fucking loser.” She cackled. “Do you know who I am? Jesus, you're like- oh my god, you're like in The Rise of the Guardians when the Easter Bunny is really small and fluffy and is acting all tough to Jack frost!”

“Fuck up. What did I say about giving me shit?” Mickey rolled his eyes. 

“I don't recall you saying anything.” Mandy grinned.

“Shit, Mickey.” Lucy laughed. “I can see why Cara thinks you guys were sleeping together.” 

“What? How?” Mickey snapped, staring hard at the screen. 

“There is so much sexual tension right- right there.” Mandy paused it right when Gallagher got right in Mickey's face. 

“Fuck off.” Mickey scoffed. “I mean, yeah, he's hot, but no way. He's a douchebag!” 

“Doesn't take away the chemistry. You two are on fiyah!” Lucy nudged Mickey. “You know what you should do?! You should touch his skin! See if you're soul mates!”

“Oh hell no. Don't tell me you believe that shit!” Mickey laughed. 

“What? Why not?” Lucy cried out. 

“It's a fucking stupid wives tale.” Mickey laughed. 

“Oh, let her dream, you asshole.” Mandy kicked him playfully. “You guys do have something going on though. Definitely something that should be addressed.”

Mickey stared at the screen again before shaking his head in anger. “It's never going to happen. Never in a million years.”

“You wanna be careful with Cara. She's going to blow this thing way out of proportion and make your life hell.” Lucy smiled, relaxing back into the couch. “She's done something like this before. You know the episode of South Park where the Korean kids start drawing art of those other two kids? She made something like that happen with an actual couple a year ago. It made them closer than ever because they both hated it so much.”

“I'll have a word with her on Monday. Can we please get drunk now?” Mickey whined, staring at his empty beer bottle mournfully. 

“Yes!” Mandy shouted out, jumping up to go get more drinks,

“I can't stay. Some of us aren't suspended and actually have to work tomorrow.” Lucy smirked. 

“I'll drive you.” Mickey nodded. 

“No, I'll just call Matthew. It'll be fine.” Lucy shook her head. 

“Call in sick!” Mandy called from the kitchen. “We can have an awesome night and get wasted and I can get Svetlana and Nika over! You'll love them, Lucy. They're so much fun.”

“Oh it's been so long since I've been drunk!” Lucy exclaimed. She looked at her phone hesitantly, glancing at Mickey's hopeful face. 

“Go on, Luce. You're the first friend I've made at this school. May as well make a night of it.” Mickey pleaded. 

“Oh alright then. I've still got to call him to let him know. I'll be back.” Lucy grinned, getting up and going into the other room. 

“She's really nice, Mickey. How'd you trick her into being your friend?” Mandy asked, offering him another beer. 

“I cried on her shoulder.” Mickey admitted as Mandy laughed. 

Lucy returned looking slightly pissed off. “He's a little mad but I'm sure he can handle it. Let's get drunk!”

It was fucking insane. Over the course of a few hours, Mickey's mood had gone from great to terrible and back to great again. He could always count on his sister to cheer him up and now he had another person who could. Fuck Gallagher. Mickey wasn't going to let him ruin his night. He had made a mathletes team and a new friend, all in one day. That was something to be happy about. 

“To new beginnings.” Mickey said, holding his bottle out. 

“To new beginnings!”


	3. Chapter 3

“Please? Can you please do this for me?”

“I- I can't call in sick to work for this. They're already on my back about my lateness.”

“Just get a new job, Carl. Come on, you owe me for punching him. I could lose my job for that if Milkovich complained about it.” Ian pleaded, calling that favor in way sooner than he had planned. After he and Carl had gone home from the liquor store, Carl had gotten really drunk and started apologising, saying that Ian could call in any genuine favor and Carl would do it, no matter what it was. Ian had remembered and wanted to save it for when he really needed it but after seeing Milkovich's smug face over winning some of the funding this morning, Ian had called Carl as soon as he'd stepped out of the staffroom. 

“Fuck. Fine. I'm surprised you're using that already.” Carl laughed. 

“So am I.” Ian said, taking a sip of his coffee as he reached his classroom. 

“Alright. What time do you need me there?” Carl sighed magnanimously, his regret over saying he owed Ian very clear in his voice. 

“About three o'clock. Could you drop by Fiona's and see if Lip has his Halloween costume from last year as well? Thanks so much! Bye!” Ian hung up before Carl could protest. It had been about a week since Milkovich had pranked Ian by swapping the sugar for salt. Ian always had at least three sugars in his coffee and had decided on an extra sugar that day. He'd spat it out all over his lunch, ruining his sandwich. Today, however, Ian had decided to scare the shit out of Mickey with Carl filming it so he could show it to the school at the assembly next week. 

The day passed by very slowly with kids pissing him off more and more until he was at the point of pulling a sickie and going home. The thought of pranking Milkovich was the only thing that kept him going. At three o'clock Carl arrived, interrupting his last class of the day. 

“Class, this is my brother, Carl. Just talk amongst yourselves for the rest of the class. I can't let you out until the bell rings though.” He said, standing up and taking Carl outside. 

“I brought everything you asked for. What are you planning on doing anyway?” Carl asked, looking through the window at the students. “God I miss being a kid.” 

“No you don't.” Ian snorted. “Did you bring the wheely thing I can lie on?”

“The creeper? Yes.” Carl smiled. 

“Good.” Ian nodded, feeling the nerves start to set in. If Milkovich didn't get scared then this whole thing was going to be messed up. The more he thought about it, the more doubtful he got, when a new idea popped in his head. He quickly went back inside his classroom, almost forgetting about Carl as he loaded up the school's system. 

He searched for Cara and found she was just in the gym thankfully. He quickly shut it down before calling to the class. “Uh, Carl's just going to watch you for a second. Don't give him any sh-schtick.” Ian caught himself just in time, ending it with the lamest word ever. “I'll be back before the bell.”

“What? Don't leave me with kids! I can't stand them.” Carl cried out fearfully, glancing at them all.

“Tough. You owe me. This is the whole favor. I'm just going next door.” Ian rolled his eyes and left before Carl could kick up even more of a fuss. Ian went into the gym to see the teacher talking to the class about who won a game or something. 

“Mr Gallagher? Can I help you?” He asked when he noticed Ian standing there. 

“Uh, I just need Cara to come with me.” Ian said politely, glancing at her grinning face. 

“Okay. Go grab your things.” He sighed. 

Cara jumped up and disappeared into the changing room, returning in a flash with her bag, “See you guys.” She called to her friends, following Ian back out into the hallway. “What's up?”

“I need your help. If Mr Carter finds out I pulled you out of class for this he'll have my balls so this is top secret, okay?” Ian said seriously, taking her into his classroom where Carl was sitting at Ian's desk on his phone while the class went riot. “Oi! I said talk amongst yourselves, not act like zoo animals! What's the matter with you?! Now, listen up.”

The class fell silent and watched as Cara sat down at a desk and Ian stood at the front of the class. He could get in a fuck tonne of trouble for what he was about to do but it would be worth it. It was the end of the day anyway. 

“Okay. So, as you probably know thanks to Cara, I'm due to prank Mr Milkovich and I need your help.” Ian looked out at them all. Some of their faces lit up with excitement, particularly Cara. “We're gonna scare him and my brother is gonna catch it on camera so we can play it in front of the whole school at the assembly next week on Tuesday.”

“Oh my god, this is going to be fucking awesome.” Cara burst out. “Sorry for swearing but fuck, I've got so many ideas about your pranks and have always wanted to help!” 

“Jesus, Cara. Calm down.” Ian laughed, shaking his head. “Alright. You're free to go home now if you want to but for those of you who wanna help, we're going to the drama department.” 

It took about half an hour, Cara getting one of the mathletes to delay Milkovich, but they were finally in place. Ian was under Milkovich's car, struggling to breathe in the clown mask, sweating like crazy in the stupid costume. Carl was hidden in the bushes nearby with a perfect view of everything. Cara had somehow managed to make it even better than what Ian had wanted. There was another student dressed up as a clown just near the door into the staff car park with a giant fake hammer. 

Cara said she'd seen the prank on YouTube and it was hilarious. It would have been better at night but the back alley atmosphere of the car park worked well enough. Cara had found a tonne of fake blood, squirted it all over herself and was lying on the ground near the other clown. There was a dummy that had been filled with red paint in the head and everything was in place. The plan was for Milkovich to walk out, see the clown smash the dummy and for him to run to his car so Ian could slide out and grab him. 

He had a student just inside the door, warding other teachers away. They were only too happy to stay out out of the way of Ian and Milkovich. For some reason they'd earned themselves a violent reputation. Milkovich's past had somehow revealed that Ian had a similar background. Ian couldn't really give a damn. He had plenty of friends elsewhere. There was another student, friends with Cara, distracting Milkovich for as long as possible. She was going to text as soon as he left, warning them. 

A few minutes passed and Ian heard Cara's phone go off. The wind suddenly burst into life, sweeping dead leaves all around the car park. There were no sounds coming from the road and Ian couldn't have been happier. Another minute and the door opened. Ian glanced upwards and saw him walk out looking exhausted. He wasn't really paying attention when suddenly Cara moaned in pain and Mickey's head snapped around. 

“Cara?”

Ian heard the student smash the dummy and Milkovich gasped out, swearing as his running came closer. Ian could hear keys jingling and suddenly he was right near Ian's head. Ian pushed out and grabbed Milkovich's leg, growling in the scariest way he could think of. Milkovich screamed. He actually screamed, falling backwards onto his ass. Ian couldn't keep it up anymore. He started laughing, everyone else laughing as Ian pulled the mask off of his head. 

He struggled to get up off of the creeper, grinning as Milkovich just lay down on the floor, breathing heavily as it dawned on him that it wasn't real. This was the best prank he had ever pulled and there was no way Milkovich could top it. 

“I fucking hate you all!” He shouted out, sitting up finally as Carl emerged from the bushes. 

“You get it all?” Ian asked, wiping tears from his face as he struggled to catch his breath. 

“Every second of it.” Carl grinned. 

“Seriously, Cara?” Milkovich whined as she came over. 

“I'm sorry, Mr Milkovich. I had to!” She gasped, helping him to his feet. 

He glared at them all, and picked up his discarded bag nearby. “I'll fucking kill you for this, Gallagher.”

“It'll be worth it. Oh man.” Ian said gleefully. 

“Get away from my car. I already know you fucking keyed it.” Milkovich snapped, looking around for his dropped keys. Cara handed them to him and he went straight to it, unlocking it and throwing his bag inside. 

“I didn't key your car you fucking idiot.” Ian sighed with disinterest. “I look forward to seeing this at the assembly next week.” Ian smirked, heading back towards the school. 

“Jesus christ.” Mickey muttered, watching as everyone slowly went back inside the school except for Cara.

“I can help you get back at him.” She said. “It'll be good enough so that you're even.” 

“I don't need your help.” Mickey grumbled, running his hands through his hair. His heart was still pounding in his chest, threatening to break out of his rib cage. 

Cara flicked her hair out of her face, wiping at some of the fake blood with a smirk. “Just let me know. I'll help you like I did with him.”

“Go home, Cara.” Mickey sighed turning to get in his car before stopping. “What's your idea?”

Cara broke into a grin and joined Mickey's side. “Glitter bomb him.”

“Aye?”

“You know? Glitter bomb him? Except you use glue on glad wrap so it really sticks to him.” She said excitedly. 

“How do I do that?” Mickey asked slowly, trying his hardest to picture it. 

“You know in Home Alone when the kid gets Harry to walk into the cling film covered in glue and then blasts him with the feathers? Like that except with glitter. You can do it on the day of the assembly so he's covered in glitter while he shows the video.” She explained, tapping on her phone as she talked. 

“I'll think about it.” Mickey muttered and climbed into his car. 

“You can call him the menstruation fairy. He's teaching one of his classes about it all right now. It'll be great.” Cara called happily as she walked away. 

Mickey sat in thought before pulling out his phone to call Mandy. She picked up on the third ring, sounding out of breath and stressed out.

“What is it? I'm at work.”

“I know. Sorry. I just had to talk to someone. Gallagher just pranked me. Gave me the biggest fucking fright ever.”

“Shit. That sucks. How you gonna get him- Joel, what the hell are you doing?!” She screeched suddenly. “Mickey, I've gotta go. I'll see you tonight at Lucy's yeah?”

“Yeah okay- bye.” Mickey echoed into the dead phone. She'd already hung up. Mickey had barely lowered his hand when it started ringing with a call from Lucy. “Hey, what's up?”

“Hey! Are you still here? Or have you left already to change your pants?” She cackled, clearly already aware of what had just gone down. 

“No. I'm still in the car park. Hurry up and I'll give you a lift home.” Mickey yawned, regretting his decision to get drunk and snoop around at Lucy's place. He mostly just wanted to curl up in bed and watch Friend's reruns. 

“Sounds good. I'll be out in a minute.” Lucy said and hung up. 

Mickey threw his phone into the seat next to him and sighed, staring at the dashboard as he replayed the last ten minutes again. In the few months that they'd been playing pranks on each other, out of all the stupid thing they'd done, this was the most intense. Neither of them had ever put in so much effort before. It made it even harder to think of one good enough to top it. Maybe Mickey should go with Cara's idea. 

“Hey, Mick. You calmed down now?” Lucy asked, giving him a fright by leaning in his window suddenly. 

“Shit! Don't scare me like that.” Mickey gasped.

“Whoa, Ian really fucked you up, didn't he?” Lucy laughed before heading around to the passenger side and getting in. 

“No. You just gave me a fright.” Mickey mumbled. “Gallagher has had no effect on me.” 

“Uh huh. Sure. Let's go, scaredy pants.” Lucy smirked, buckling up before sticking her feet up on the dash as Mickey started the car up. 

“Get your feet down or I'm not coming over.” Mickey snapped, tapping her leg quickly as he backed out of the park. 

“Mickey, I'm finally letting you and Mandy snoop through my husbands things. You're not going to bail because I stuck my feet up on the dash of your car.” Lucy smiled, reclining further into her seat while unlocking her phone. 

“Fucking try me, Lucy. I am not in the mood today.” Mickey grumbled, speeding off and away from the worst day of his life. 

“Sorry.” Lucy sighed, putting her legs down and putting her phone to her ear. “Hi sweetie. Just wanted to check in and see how you're doing. Give me a call when you can. Love you!” 

“Fuck, I am so ready to take him down.” Mickey sighed without thinking before catching the look of frustration Lucy gave him. “Sorry.”

“No, don't be it's. . . I don't know. Part of me wants you to find something that will confirm it all. Let me know I'm not going crazy. But the other part of me just wants everything to be fine. It's stupid, I know.”

“No it's not stup- fucking go! The light has changed!” Mickey burst out, slamming his hand down on his horn. The driver in front beeped their horn back and took off, breaking the speed limit within seconds. “Sorry. Look, it's normal to want everything to be fine. He is your husband after all. But- you don't get as nervous and worried as you for no reason. There's got to be something that started this all. When did you start worrying?”

Lucy blushed furiously and looked out the window, muttering something about a year ago. She continued to stare out the window and wouldn't speak for the rest of the trip so Mickey left it. He pulled into the underground car park for his apartment and found his park. 

“I'm just gonna get a change of clothes. We're getting really drunk and spending the night, right?” Mickey asked as he got out of the car. 

“Please.” Lucy smiled, coming out of her shell once more. 

They went up the three flights of stairs, puffing and panting when they reached his apartment. Stupid broken lift. Mickey unlocked the door and dumped his keys on the table, walking straight to his bedroom. “There's some juice or something in the fridge.” He called, knowing fully well that was where she was already headed. 

Mickey was about to pack a bag when a thought occurred to him. He quickly opened his laptop and loaded up YouTube, searching his name. Nothing came up. He tried 'clown prank' paired with 'school' and still got nothing, much to his relief. He shut his laptop down again and grabbed his clothes and shoved them in a bag before returning to Lucy who was texting on her phone. 

“Mandy just got off. She's going to bring Svetlana as well because she's got the night off and apparently knows where to look.” She said without looking up. 

“Wonderful.” Mickey sighed, going to his fridge to stare at its emptiness sadly. He really needed to go grocery shopping. He was so fucking lazy when it came to that. The last three nights he'd had takeaways and alcohol. He should really cut back. 

“We going then?” Lucy asked, finally putting her phone away. 

“I guess.” Mickey muttered, looking around to make sure he hadn't forgotten anything. He shrugged his shoulders and they were off, driving across town to Lucy's big house. She only had two kids, six and nine years old, and yet their house was big enough for more. Mickey always thought maybe they had planned on having more kids but never gotten around to it. He'd always be jealous of her house though. It was so bright and warm looking. Just being inside it gave Mickey a happy feeling. The rooms were comfortably furnished and were decorated with tonnes of happy family photos. 

Whenever Mickey was away from Lucy's house, he was always intent on getting her to see the light. But whenever he was in her house, having a drink with Lucy and Matthew or watching a cartoon with her kids, or whatever else he got dragged into doing, those photo's just made him crave what Lucy had. He forgot all the bad things he knew about Matthew and was just happy to be friends with them. The photos in particular made Mickey long for a family of his own with his own partner and maybe a kid or two. 

But he was far too terrified of actually taking that step. He only ever had one night stands every few weeks. Sometimes he just wouldn't even realise how long it had been until his dick reminded him somehow. His biggest fear though, was not finding his soulmate. He hadn't heard about the legend until he and Mandy had stayed at Uncle Ronnie's. He'd been telling them something about a work mate's relative finding their soulmate and not shutting up about the color. Mickey didn't want to start looking for a soulmate in fear of never finding one. 

That night he'd gone and done a whole bunch of research on it, finding out exactly what a soulmate was and what it meant when you found yours. He'd read stories of people that believed in it and people that had proof that it was bullshit. Mickey had been confused for a while. It wasn't until he'd gotten a job at Lincoln High that he'd given up. He'd gone back to the Southside for a birthday party and everyone had sneered at him, made fun of him, said everything that had needed to be said for Mickey to doubt his self worth once more. He'd realized that he couldn't have a soulmate. No one would ever want him in that way. He'd read stories of people going through their entire life without finding theirs. That was Mickey. 

From then on, whenever someone asked Mickey what he thought, he'd tell them he thought it was all a big hoax. There was no such thing as color and their 'black and white' world was just the way it was. Mickey had never revealed to anyone ever that he was just scared of dying alone. 

“Did Mandy say Svetlana was coming over?” Lucy asked, pulling Mickey from his thoughts as he pulled into the driveway. 

“Um, I think so. Probably.” Mickey muttered, inching closer to the garage door before turning the car off all together. They both got out with groans, practically dragging their feet to the front door. As soon as it was open, Mickey went into the lounge and collapsed on the couch, snatching up the remote to turn on a random music channel. Lucy went off to her bedroom and returned a few minutes later in her pyjama's looking sheepish. 

“I wanted to wear something comfy.” She shrugged, defending herself further when Mickey continued to stare at her in disapproval. “What?! It's a Friday night, I'll wear whatever the fuck I want.” 

Mickey laughed. “I'm not judging. I'm actually jealous.”

“You can wear Matthews if you'd like?” She said seriously as she sat down next to him. 

“I'm good.” Mickey snorted. They relaxed for a while, chatting about nothing in particular, while they waited for Mandy. 

“Let's start drinking without her.” Lucy said suddenly, going from talking intently about the upcoming election to alcohol in 0.2 seconds. Mickey couldn't blame her really. 

They both moved to the kitchen, Mickey jumping up to sit on the island while Lucy started pulling down the spirits from the top of the cupboard. Mickey opened his mouth to say he was going to call Mandy but Lucy beat him to speaking first. 

“If I'm going to let you go through Matthew's shit, I need to be very drunk.” She sighed, opening up a bottle of vodka before taking a swig. 

“You don't need to be that drunk.” Mickey laughed, watching as she scrunched up her face. 

“Yes, I do.” She said, taking another swig before slamming the bottle down on the counter. The front door opened and the entry way was filled with the sound of three females laughing hysterically. “Svetlana and Nika are here!”

Mickey looked up and smiled at the girls as they all walked in. “Hey. Who's running the restaurant?”

“We have to close.” Svetlana said bitterly, sitting down at the bar looking miserable. 

“What? Permanently?” Lucy looked at them all in horror. 

“No! Definitely not. A fucking customer knocked their candle onto the floor and set fire to a corner of the dining area.” Nika sighed angrily, pouring herself a drink. 

“What the fuck? Why didn't you tell me on the phone, Mandy?” Mickey asked incredulously. 

“It had only just happened like right when I hung up.” 

“Oh right. Was anyone hurt?”

“Customer who knock candle get small burn but he okay.” Svetlana smiled, seemingly happy that it had happened. 

“Part of the wall needs to be fixed up and the carpet needs replacing but otherwise it's all fine. Our insurance will cover it.” Nika waved her hand, dismissing it all. “We got everyone out and left it for tomorrow. Lucy is more important right now.” 

“Huh?” Lucy looked at her in confusion as Mandy muttered something and wandered off, her face blushing bright red. 

“We are not here for you?” Svetlana asked. “Mandy! Get back here!”

“Uh, I may have told them you were going to leave Matthew to get them here.” Mandy admitted from around the corner. She returned with a guilty smile plastered on her face. “I knew that would bring them here and I knew that with them here, you would be more likely to think about it properly.” 

“Oh for fucks sake.” Lucy groaned and took a huge mouthful of the vodka once more. 

“Just slow down a bit there.” Mickey said nervously. He didn't want her to get so drunk that she blacked out. Just because she didn’t have to get up early in the morning, didn't mean she wanted to wake up in a hospital. 

“Mandy and I cook dinner now?” Nika asked suddenly, not giving the awkward silence a chance to settle over them. 

The kitchen was suddenly full of life and noise as they clanged pots around and started chopping fresh veges for their pizza. There was nothing better than Nika's home made pizza and Mickey was eternally grateful that Nika was teaching Mandy how she did it. 

“What were you guys laughing at when you walked in?” Lucy asked, putting her phone down with a sigh. 

“Oh! Oh my fucking god!” Mandy burst out suddenly, dropping her knife to wave her hands in Svetlana's direction. “Load it up! Show them!”

“Okay! Okay!” Svetlana grinned, unlocking her phone before typing something in. She handed her phone to Mickey on it's side as a video started to play. Mickey watched with growing mortification as he saw himself get scared of Gallagher. Mickey sat the phone down as the rest of the video played out while he put his head in his hands and let out a huge groan. He was so glitter bombing Gallagher next week. That mother fucking prick of an asshole. 

“I'm going to fucking kill him.” Mickey growled as Lucy howled with laughter. 

“Oh man, even if you glitter bomb him on the day he shows this to the school, that's not enough to top this. Every single student is going to know your face and name and will not let you live this down. He's fucking won, Mickey.” Lucy said, wiping tears from her face. 

“No! Don't say it!” Mickey shouted out. “I'm not letting him win this! He's gonna fucking pay for this shit man. I will prank him a hundred times over if I have to top his prank!” 

“Whatever, Mickey. Sure you will.” Mandy rolled her eyes as she resumed cutting her veges up. 

Mickey flipped her off before grabbing his phone and opening up Google. He typed in 'epic prank ideas' and waited patiently while his stupidly slow phone loaded the results. He clicked on the first link entitled 'top 50 pranks' and grinned maniacally as he scrolled down and the idea's started forming in his head. He was so talking to Cara about this on Monday. In the mean time, he had to push Gallagher out of his mind and focus on his best friend. 

The evening wore on with the five of them getting steadily drunker, laughing more at things that weren't really that funny. It wasn't until it was reaching midnight when Mandy finally brought up the subject of what they were there to do. 

“Alright! Ladies! I think it's high time we go upstairs and-”

“Make out!” Nika cried out loudly while Svetlana almost spat her drink everywhere and Lucy cackled like she always did when she was drunk. 

“No!” Mandy giggled. “I don't think Lucy is drunk enough for that yet and I don't think Mickey needs to see that either. We're here to snoop through fuck face's things!” 

“Yay!” Nika clapped excitedly. She slipped off the bar stool and landed gracefully on her feet while Svetlana dropped down from the counter and wobbled about like a newborn horse. 

They all traipsed through the house, trying to be quiet for some reason, until the reached Lucy's bedroom. The girls all went straight for it, not wasting any time at all but Mickey lingered behind and stood next to Lucy who looked on the brink of tears. 

“Hey, you okay?” 

“Yeah, I'm alright. It's just- it's just a bit hard or something.” Lucy shrugged, moving to lean against the wall as she watched Mandy start pulling out her husband's shirts. 

“No, I know. But this is good. Because if we can't find anything then you can stop worrying.” Mickey said, standing next to her. 

“What happens if you do though?” Lucy sniffed, dropping her head to stare at the floor. “I've been with Matthew for sixteen years. We have kids together. We have a life together.” 

“That he decided to throw away. If we find something, then you stand up for yourself. You take your kids and go to your mom's or to Nika and Svetlana's. I know they'll be happy to take you in.” Mickey attempted to cheer her up slightly but there were tears dripping from the tip of her nose now as she shook her head slightly. 

“I can't. I can't do it again. He'll hurt- he'll upset the kids.” Lucy whispered as she finally succumbed to her tears and slid down the wall, her loud sobs distracting the girls from whatever they were doing. 

Mickey slid down next to her and stuck his arm around her, a sudden fear rearing its head in his stomach. “Lucy, what do you mean? Have you done this before?”

Lucy nodded, her eyes clenched shut as tears continued to leak out and the girls came and sat down in front of the two of them. “It was almost a year ago now, a few nights after we all met.” Lucy croaked, her voice devoid of emotion. “He was complaining about me getting drunk and staying the night. I was stupid. I made a joke about him being jealous and scared that I was cheating and he got this weird look on his face and I just- I knew. I could see it in is fucking eyes.” Lucy hissed, the anger finally washing over her. 

“We stared at each other for a second before I just asked him outright if he had been cheating and he didn't say a fucking word. He just stood there and so I asked him how long and he-” Lucy's voice started to break again. “He hit me. Right when Gemma walked into the room. I didn't even know she was there until I could see again. She was crying and he was yelling at her to go to her room and- I just got up off the floor and took her to her room with her brother. Slept in there that night and we haven't brought it up since.” 

“Lucy. . .” Mandy whispered, tears in her eyes. Lucy shook her head, not looking at any of them. 

“You come stay with us, okay? My father? He hit me and my mother in Russia. He constantly beat us so we run away to America. Land of free. I keep you safe, yes?” Svetlana said simply, as if it was all that easy. 

“I can't do that. I couldn't bring my kids to you or- or leave him. It's- it's fine.” Lucy shook her head. “He hasn't done it since and it's all fine. I don't want the kids to grow up without a father.” 

“I'm not-” Mickey took in a deep breath to stop himself from yelling. “I'm not letting you stay with him. I don't give a shit what you say but you are not spending another night with that monster.” 

“Mickey.” Lucy finally looked at him, her eyes swollen and bloodshot. 

Mickey wrapped his arms around her and pulled her into a big hug. “No one hurts my best friend like that. No one.”


	4. Chapter 4

“What if you do the post it notes prank but instead of post it notes, it's pictures of Nic Cage?”

“Ooh, I like that one.” Mickey nodded, writing it down on the list.

“Oh! Okay, you could glitter bomb him right when he goes on his lunch break so that you know he's definitely going to be distracted for a decent amount of time. I'll get some of my friends and we can do the Nic Cage notes on every single surface in his classroom.” Cara said seriously, the evil glee shining in her eyes. 

“That's- that's over the top and perfect. I love it.” Mickey snorted. 

“Mr Milkovich?”

“Yes, Kevin?” Mickey sighed. This kid was a whiz when it came to maths but for literally anything else outside of the subject, he was a fucking idiot with stupid questions. 

“Have you ever actually touched Mr Gallagher? Like, what if he is your soulmate? You guys practically spend half your time thinking about each other.” Kevin shrugged, a smirk on his face as the other mathletes laughed. 

“Not that it's true or it's any of your business or anything related to the task at hand, yes. I have. I've shoved him a few times. Now hurry up and finish that homework so that you can start our shit.” Mickey sighed. 

“But- have you actually touched his skin? 'Cause you gotta touch his skin.” Kevin reiterated, leaning backwards in his chair like the smug prick he was. 

“I guess I haven't actually touched his skin.” Mickey rolled his eyes, flicking through one of his work books to find the section he was after. 

“Um, I have a question.” Cara sighed, dropping her pen to tug on her the part of her hair that was now a different shade but definitely not regulation. “How was Kev's question not related to the task at hand when you've literally got us, mostly me, helping you come up with a good way to get back at Mr Gallagher?”

Mickey stared at her, trying to think of some kind of smart reply and failing. “Shut up, Winters. Study the work I gave you. I've got a good feeling about the competition next month.”

Cara just laughed and pulled out her phone that had just beeped. 

“I've gotta get going. My mom wants me home in time for dinner.” Zoe said suddenly, standing up with all her things in her bag already. 

“Yeah, okay, you can all go home now I guess. We only had time to take a short meeting anyway.” Mickey yawned, remembering he had to pick up Lucy soon. He quickly shut down his computer and started packing his things away while his favourite students left the room, muttering goodbyes, until it was only Cara left. 

“Do you want me to organist for the prank tomorrow? I'm happy to if you want to. I still think you should get him covered in glitter for the assembly.” She waggled her eyebrows down at him. 

“Yeah, sure. Why not? It's not gonna be enough to top his though.” Mickey sighed.

“Sweet! School doesn't start 'til ten with the assembly so why don't we meet at nine in the staff car park? Organize everything?”

“Fine. It's not like I wanted to sleep in or anything.” Mickey yawned.

“Okay cool. I'll see you in the morning!”

Mickey let out a breath and sat for a moment, enjoying the silence, before he grabbed his phone and text Lucy that he was leaving now. After her drunken confession, they'd all stayed the night with her, pulling mattresses and blankets into the living room to make blanket forts. The morning after had been a haze of throwing up, cleaning up and not much talking at all. Everyone had left except for Mickey by the afternoon.

He'd managed to talk some sense into Lucy to at least consider getting out of the house but he wasn't sure if it had really hit home. They'd picked up her kids together and were having a coffee while Gemma and Steve had told them all about the yucky veges grandma made them eat. Mickey stayed for the rest of the weekend, keeping Lucy and the kids company until Matthew had returned home on Sunday night. Mickey had found it almost impossible not to beat his ass right then and there. He couldn't give a shit about moving on from his violent past; Matthew was a fucking asshole and Mickey hated his guts. He'd had to leave almost straight after, telling Lucy to text him if she needed him. 

He hadn't heard from her until earlier on the next day with a text asking him to pick her up once he'd finished work. No explanation for her not showing up that day and no reply to his reply. Mickey was a little nervous as to what was going on but no amount of pestering had gotten him an explanation so he just had to get there as fast as he could. 

When Mickey pulled up outside her house, he got out feeling like he was going to throw up, scared of what he was going to find. Matthew's car was sitting in the driveway so he was home from work early. The fact just made Mickey feel even more sick. He walked up the front steps and spotted Matthew sitting on the couch watching TV or something. Mickey opened the front door and stepped inside, closing the door quietly behind him. 

“Oh for fucks sake! Why'd you fucking bring him over!” Matthew shouted as Mickey walked past. Mickey ignored him and continued on upstairs to where he hoped Lucy was. He found her in her bedroom, crying her eyes out while she packed clothes into a small suitcase. Her back was to Mickey and when he shut the door she stopped crying and stiffened. 

“I'm packing as fast as I can, Matthew.” She said coldly. 

“Lucy, what happened?” Mickey asked desperately, crossing the room to reach her. 

She turned around and collapsed to the ground at the sight of him. “Mickey.” She cried out. 

Mickey pushed down the anger over the swelling bruise forming on her jaw. “You okay?”

“No!” Lucy sobbed, flinging her arms around him as she let it all out. “He- he figured out someone had been through his- his drawers and I- I told him what had happened and he- he hit me and then Stevie came in when he heard the shouting and- fuck, Mickey, I've never been so angry.” Lucy's tone dropped and she let go to look at Mickey through her puffy eyes. 

“He started yelling at Steve and he saw me holding my face and- poor little Stevie tried to hit Matthew's legs and so-” Lucy started to cry again, wringing her shirt tightly in her fists. “Matthew kicked him. He literally kicked him out of the room and shut the door. I got up and I slapped him. I slapped him so hard my hand was stinging. He hit me again and then he kicked me in the ribs and then he just- sat on the bed and stared at me while I was crying on the floor.”

“I'm going to fucking kill him.” Mickey said quietly, using every ounce of his being to stay there with Lucy instead of going downstairs. “Is Steve okay?”

“Physically, yes. Just a bruise on his stomach. But mentally? I don't even know how he's going to deal with this.” Lucy sniffed, sitting back against the bed to stare at the floor. “Matthew went to work for a few hours before he came back and told me he wanted me out of the house by tonight and to take the kids with me.” 

Mickey pulled out his phone and called Mandy, hoping she was able to answer the phone. She answered on the third ring, Mickey immediately started talking before she could even say hello. “I need you to bring Nika and Svetlana over to Lucy's right now. Matthew hit her and he kicked Steve.” 

“Holy fucking shit. We're on our way.” Mandy said, hanging up immediately. 

“Why are they coming here? I don't want them to see me like this.” Lucy started crying again, her face in her hands. 

“Luce, you look fine. Don't you worry. They're my back up. They'll make sure I don't go overboard when I talk to Matthew.” Mickey sighed, getting up to start packing for Lucy. He shoved as much clothes and other things in as he could before zipping it up and sitting it by the door. 

“Come on, let's go pack for Gemma and Steve.” Mickey said firmly, helping a reluctant Lucy to her feet. They tread quietly down the hall to their shared bedroom where they were both reading quietly. 

“Mickey!” Gemma said happily when she saw him. 

“Hey, kiddo. How you doing?” Mickey smiled. 

“Did you see mommy's face?” Steve interrupted. 

“I did.” Mickey said sadly. “But it's okay. You guys are all going to go and stay with Aunty Nika and Aunty Svetlana!” 

“Is daddy coming?” Gemma asked curiously, too young to really understand what was going on. 

“No, he's going to stay here.” Mickey said carefully as his phone went off. He checked it to see that the girls were hair already. “Lucy? Do you want to start packing for them? I'm gonna go meet Mandy and that.” 

Lucy nodded with a sigh as Mickey left her to it, feeling extremely guilty for leaving her alone again. He went downstairs and walked past the living room again, Matthew in exactly the same spot. He opened the door to the girls and made a shushing motion. They all nodded and pushed past Mickey, heading straight upstairs. 

“She's in the kids' bedroom.” Mickey called after them. He followed them up but instead of going back to Lucy, he went back to her bedroom. He went into the en-suite bathroom and found a pair of scissors in the cabinet. He returned to the bedroom and went straight to the closet. Lucy's bruised face flashed in front of his eyes and suddenly there was no stopping him. He snipped and sliced and tore apart every single piece of clothing Matthew had in there. When he had gotten everything in there, he went to the drawers and started on them. He destroyed the pillows and the blankets. He went into the bathroom and used the cup in there to soak the bed. He filled all of Matthew's shoes with water and he was just about to start pouring out the toothpaste when Mandy finally came to find him. 

“Holy shit. What the hell have you done?” She looked around in wonder at the bedroom that now looked like the shittiest winter wonderland ever. 

“Attempted to get back at him in a non-violent way?” Mickey shrugged. 

“Well, we're ready to go.” She smiled sadly at him. 

“Okay. Just give me a second.” Mickey said, darting into the bathroom to start squirting the shampoo and conditioner everywhere along with the toothpaste and his shaving cream. He found the toilet cleaner and squeezed it all over the floor before throwing a couple of cups of water on the floor, stuffing the sink holes and leaving the taps running. 

“Are you quite finished yet?” Mandy sighed, watching him from the door way with a smirk on her face. 

“I guess.” Mickey snorted before his face fell as he remembered why he was doing this. “It's not enough though.” He said darkly. 

“I know. Come on.” Mandy mumbled, the two of them heading out together. Mickey grabbed Lucy's suitcase as the rest of the group traipsed out of the bedroom down the hall. They all walked down the stairs quietly, nobody knowing what to say. When they reached the front door, Mickey hesitated, letting everyone go before him while he contemplated saying something to Matthew. 

“Mickey, leave it.” Lucy hissed, looking at him desperately. 

Mickey looked at the living room doorway and back at Lucy, mouthing a sorry before walking into the living room. “Just so you know, we're going to the police for what you did.” 

Matthew looked up at Mickey with a look of boredom. “You won't do that.” He sighed. “She'll come running back to me again.” 

“Again?” Mickey asked in confusion. 

“Oh yeah, didn't you know? Before we had kids, she left me but she came running back. Nothing changes with this woman.” He snorted, turning back to the TV. 

Mickey stared at him, the anger building within him. He tried so hard to hold himself back but Matthew's stupid fucking face won. “You know what has changed though?”

“What's that?” He asked disinterestedly as he changed the channel. 

“This time, she's got me to protect her.” Mickey gritted out as he marched across the floor and smacked Matthew right in the face. The pain of it shot up his hand immediately, shocking Mickey with how much it actually hurt. He didn't remember it feeling that bad. It had been a while though. 

“You fucking asshole!” Matthew shouted, jumping to his feet while blood gushed out of his nose. He ignored it though and took a swing at Mickey, clocking him on the side of his head. 

Mickey's vision disappeared for a split second as people started shouting. He swung at Matthew again and got him under his jaw. Mickey could have sworn he heard his jaw break or at least dislocate. Matthew kicked him in his balls and Mickey started to go down but he was caught around the neck by Matthew, his throat getting crushed in the process. Mickey had underestimated how strong this dick was. 

“Let him go!” Mandy's voice rang out behind him. 

“You wouldn't.” Matthew laughed above him as Mickey's vision started to fade, his hands scrabbling uselessly against Matthew's.

“I would rather go to prison for murder than see my brother die. Fucking let him go or I will shoot.” Mandy growled. 

Another second passed before Matthew relinquished his grip on Mickey and he dropped to the ground, gasping for air and clutching his throat. Someone hauled him to his feet and he was dragged outside and shoved into a car, voices scolding him as he tried to recover. 

“Mickey, what the fuck were you thinking?!” Mandy yelled at him. 

“You- you have a fucking gun?” Mickey choked out. 

“You're welcome.” Mandy snorted, sitting back in the seat next to him. 

Mickey sat up properly and looked around. He was in his car with Mandy in the backseat. Nika was in driving in the front. “Where are the others?”

“In my car. We're all going to my house though.” Nika glanced back at him. “You alright?” 

“Yeah, just sore.” Mickey muttered, rubbing his throat gingerly. It was going to bruise so badly. Wouldn't that be a sight to see for Gallagher. “Is Lucy okay? And the kids?”

“The kids are fine. Lucy's a little shaken up from seeing him do that to you but she's okay.” Mandy said reassuringly, giving Mickey's hand a squeeze. 

It hurt for Mickey to talk so he remained silent for the rest of the drive across to town to Svetlana and Nika's small home. When they got there, the others were already there. Nika made hot drinks for everyone while Mandy found things for the kids to do in the spare bedroom. Once they were all settled in the lounge with their drinks, Mickey asked the obvious question. 

“So, what are we going to do about him?” He had been talking about calling the police but part of him just meant getting rid of him. He knew how. He'd dealt with his dad's messes before. 

“We could get him when he's on his way to work.” Mandy said quietly, staring into space with a bitter glare. 

“Dump the body in the lake.” Mickey muttered, taking a sip of his coffee. “Or make it look like an accident.” 

“What? Guys, no. We're not killing him.” Lucy interjected, pulling them from their dark thoughts as she realized what they were saying. 

“Then we go to the cops.” Mickey demanded. 

“I have a license for my gun and I pulled it out in self defense. He's got nothing on us. We have proof of what he's done. Mickey's neck is already starting to bruise!” Mandy said angrily. 

“Mandy, it's okay.” Mickey smiled at her sadly across the room. 

“I don't- I don't want to call the cops. I want to believe he can be better. I don't want my kids growing up without a father.” Lucy clenched her eyes shut tightly, a couple of tears escaping. 

“Lucy, I understand what you mean.” Svetlana spoke up. “But he will not be better. He is abusive fucking asshole. Look at what he did to you. To Mickey. To your son.”

Lucy glanced at Mickey's face, her eyes dropping to his neck before she looked away. There was guilt all over her face and Mickey's heart was breaking just to see her like that. He put his coffee down and shuffled along the couch to pull her into a hug, letting her cry on his shoulder. 

“I don't think I've ever cried so much before.” She laughed as she let go, wiping the tears from her face. 

“I don't think I've ever seen you cry before.” Mickey laughed as well. They fell into an uncomfortable silence, no one knowing what to say, when the kids came in to show Lucy their drawings. 

“They're so good, you guys. You've done so well.” Lucy smiled weakly. Steve and Gemma looked at her for a second before tackling her in a three way hug with 'I love you's' and kisses. They went back to their drawings and left the adults alone again. 

“Lucy,” Mickey started up again. “Whatever you decide, we're with you. Whatever you want to do, whether it be call the cops, do nothing or move to fucking Canada or something, we will support you a hundred percent of the way. We're here for you.” 

“Thank you.” 

*

“Jesus fucking christ.” 

“You look like you're wearing bad zombie make-up.” Mandy snorted from the door frame. 

“I look terrible. I'm gonna get so much shit at work today.” Mickey sighed, touching his neck gingerly and wincing when even that hurt. 

“Just call in sick.” Mandy said simply, as if he hadn't called in sick at least twice a month because he had gotten drunk with Mandy.

“I can't. I've organized with Cara to do a prank on Gallagher.” Mickey muttered, grabbing his toothbrush from the cup next to the sink. 

“You should call in sick and spend the day with me.” Mandy whined, kicking him lightly in the back. 

“I can't. I've already taken too many sick days lately and I kinda wanna be there when Gallagher plays that stupid video at the assembly.” 

“Fine. Be a loser.” Mandy rolled her eyes. 

“Whatsh habbening wif your work?” Mickey asked around the toothbrush and froth. 

“Oh! Yeah, it's just gonna take a few days for it to be fixed up and Nika wants to give it an extra day to get rid of the paint smells or something. I'm back at work on Friday.” Mandy said happily. “I was in the office with them the other day and I saw some things that looked like they could be for opening up a new restaurant.” 

“Oh aweshome!” Mickey said happily. “If it'sh closher to-” Mickey spat out all the shit in his mouth. “If it's closer to your home you could work at that one.” 

“Hopefully. This fire might have delayed it all though.” Mandy sighed, tapping on her phone. “Shit, don't you need to leave?”

“What'sh the time?” Mickey looked round at her, almost spitting toothpaste at her. 

“Quarter past nine.”

Mickey spat into the sink. “Fuck!” 

He rushed about his apartment in a blur, grabbing things to throw in his bag. Within a minute he was ready to go. He grabbed his keys, and left his bedroom. Mandy was sitting on the couch watching TV. He kissed the top of her head and headed out the door, calling out behind him. “Make sure you check on Lucy today! Love you!” 

“Love you too, loser!” She called happily. 

Mickey raced down the stairs in record time, getting into his car and driving to school in almost the same amount of time. He definitely broke a few laws on his journey but no one stopped him thankfully. When he arrived at school, Cara was standing in the teachers car park waiting for him. 

“Where the hell have you been? We were- whoa. What the hell happened to you?” Cara's eyes went wide when she took in the bruises on the side of his face and his neck. 

“Never you mind. Have you been inside yet? Is he here?” Mickey asked, opening the door and heading for the staffroom. 

“Yeah. He got here right when I got here. I think he knows something's up because I was in the staff car park. No matter.” Cara said happily. 

“Wait here. I need a coffee.” Mickey said firmly before going into the staffroom. He ignored the eyes of the few teachers in there and went straight to the coffee maker, tapping his fingers impatiently as it refused to spit out coffee any faster than normal. He chucked a sugar in his cup and poured the coffee out as soon as it was ready. He walked back to the door, rolling his eyes at the whispers, and went to open the door when Gallagher fucking walked in of course. 

“Jesus, watch where you're going!” Mickey cried out as his coffee sloshed dangerously close to the edges. “Don't just go charging through doors like a mad man.” 

“Fuck off, Milko-” Gallagher's eyes widened more than Cara's had as he took in the bruises. A bruise on the side of your face was easy to lie about. Marks on your neck that had very clear fingerprints in them? Not so easy. “What the fuck happened to you? Are you okay?”

“Fine.” Mickey muttered before brushing past him. He marched down the halls, Cara keeping up easily with her long legs, and went straight to his classroom. “Alright, so what's the plan?”

“Well, thankfully, because no one is gonna be here for at least another half hour and we don't have to be anywhere 'til ten, it doesn't really matter that you were late. I figure we can glitter bomb him asap and then Nicolas Cage his classroom during the assembly.” Cara said, sitting down on top of a desk. 

Mickey nodded, sipping his coffee and almost moaning at the warmth and the taste. He and Mandy had stayed up late after leaving Nika and Svetlana's, discussing different ways they could kill Matthew. The night had ended with the two of them stating that they wouldn't actually do anything because that life was behind them now. Still, Mickey could tell that a part of Mandy was longing to deal with him the illegal way like they used to. 

As a result, he'd slept in and hadn't had time to buy his coffee and he felt like complete shit. His voice was croaky, his neck hurt with every movement, and he couldn't seem to shake the headache that had been hounding him since the night before. Cara was chattering on about something but Mickey could barely even focus as he opened up his emails. He saw one from Jeff and was reminded that he needed to talk to him about Lucy. She was too upset and embarrassed to call in sick to work for the week so Mickey promised he'd do it for her.

“I need to go see Jeff before we do anything.” Mickey stated, interrupting Cara midstream. 

“All right. Let's go then. I'll text the others on the way and get them to get everything together.” Cara slid off the desk and looked at him expectantly. 

Mickey grabbed his coffee and left the room, Cara following him close behind. "You can't come in with me. . . Just in case you were hoping to." 

"I'm nosy, but I'm not that nosy." Cara rolled her eyes, forever tapping away on her phone. 

"Good." Mickey mumbled, trying to figure out how he was going to tell Jeff what had happened without revealing too much. Lucy wanted to stay off until her bruises had healed and there were no signs, to make sure her kids were okay.

"Is it about your bruises?" Cara asked suddenly, pulling him from his thoughts. 

"Cara." Mickey said in a warning tone as they entered Jeff's office. "Hi, I need to speak to Jeff. As soon as possible."

His receptionist, who Mickey had never bothered to learn the name of like an asshole, looked up at him, prepared to send him away but her mouth just dropped open at the sight of him. Not even buttoning his shirt all the way up could hide the awful dark ring around his neck. 

"Head on through." She stammered. 

"Thanks." Mickey smiled. "Wait there." He threw over his shoulder at Cara. He knocked a couple of times on the door before opening the door and walking in. 

"Mickey. What can I- holy fucking shit. What the hell happened to you?" Jeff stared at him in shock as he sat down.

"I got into a fight. He tried to strangle me but my sister pulled a gun and he let me go." Mickey said simply, not making any effort to sugar coat it. 

"What the fuck." Jeff just stared, seemingly unable to process it. 

"Yeah, it was Lucy's husband? Which is why she isn't coming in today. She's finally left him and she wants to wait 'til her bruises are gone and her son's are gone and that they're all relatively okay." 

"I- absolutely. Not a problem." Jeff finally shut his mouth and nodded. "I'm assuming she doesn't want anyone to know?"

"Not a soul." Mickey nodded and stood up. "Another thing, Gallagher is playing a video of the prank he pulled on me at the assembly today. But I'm going to glitter bomb him beforehand. Just a warning." Mickey smiled. 

"O- okay. Sure." Jeff nodded dumbly, completely overwhelmed from all the news. "Are you okay though? You don't need to go home? Take some time?"

"No I'll be all right. I'll just give everyone written work so I don't have to talk as much." Mickey smiled. "Thanks though." 

He left the room without another word, motioning for Cara to follow him out of the office. She jumped up and started rattling off nonsense about Kevin skipping out on the impromptu study session the team had accidentally created late last night. Mickey couldn't really give a damn though. So long as they showed up to the official meetings, they could do whatever they wanted. 

"Mr Milkovich, where's Mrs Knott?" Cara asked suddenly, pulling Mickey from his thoughts.

"Who? What?" Mickey stammered out stupidly, subconsciously reaching up to touch his neck. Cara eyed him up suspiciously before Mickey dropped his hand to his side. 

"Your only friend at this school? Lucy Knott? Where is she? She's usually here talking to you about her annoying husband already." Cara made it sound like she was disinterested but Mickey could just detect the genuine curiosity underneath the tone though. 

"Um. She's sick." Mickey lied, although it was technically true. Cara stared at him suspiciously as they walked, her eyes darting down to his neck. She opened her mouth to say something but Mickey stopped her. "Cara, drop it. It is none of your god damn business." 

"But I-"

Mickey stopped walking and pulled her aside, glancing around to make sure no one was around. "Look, she split from her husband because he's an abusive asshole. I stuck up for her and he did this to me." Mickey gestured to himself. "You tell anyone I will fucking make sure you're expelled." 

Cara nodded, a look of pain ghosting over her face. "Got it."

"All right. What are we doing then?" Mickey sighed in relief, feeling like a weight had dropped off of his shoulders.

"Right. Um, Zoe is printing off the Nicolas Cage pictures as we speak. Kevin is keeping an eye on Mr Gallagher. As soon as he goes to the bathroom we're going to be there." Cara explained, going into detail of how everything would hopefully play out. Mickey was extremely nervous. He didn't feel like it could top Gallagher's prank. Like it was a pathetic attempt to even the playing field. Mickey didn't have the time or forethought to try something else though. He was constantly worried about Lucy and the kids to really care about anything else. 

"Do you really think this is going to work? Mickey asked nervously, sculling the rest of his coffee. “Come on. We'll go back to the staffroom.” 

“Yes. I really do. If I didn't, then I wouldn't be putting so much time and effort into it.” Cara rolled her eyes as her phone burst into life. 

Mickey pulled his own phone out of his pocket to check how many views the video had now. An annoyingly obsessive habit he'd somehow picked up over the weekend. It was at twenty thousand views already and was only going up. Mickey was so fucked off. After this morning there was going to be a hell of a lot more views as well. Kids were going to show it to their parents. Parents would show it to their work friends who would show it to their families. It was never going to end. Mickey was certain that at one point, someone would see him in the street and recognize him from the video. 

Mickey let Cara into the staffroom with him and they sat down, ignoring the looks from the few other teachers in there. They were both just on their phone for five minutes, ignoring each other, when suddenly Cara tossed a pot of glitter at him. 

“It's go time. He's on the move.” Cara grinned. 

They took off towards Gallagher's side of the school, Cara on the phone to Kevin as he tailed Gallagher. It was like a terrible and dramatic spy movie. Kevin confirmed for them that Gallagher was indeed in the bathroom down the hall from his classroom. He had the bag of glad wrap and glue, ready for them by the door. Mickey was extremely excited that he didn't even notice Kevin's eyes almost bulging out of his head in shock of the bruises. Mickey hated to imagine what they looked like now. 

They put a decent amount of glad wrap over the door, making it so it would cover all of Gallagher's head and most of his chest. Mickey took a few steps back and waited impatiently, the glitter pot open in his hands. A couple of minutes passed by and the door opened with Gallagher walking straight into the glad wrap. He let out a muffled shout and pulled it away in disgust. Right when he pulled it out of the way, Mickey emptied the pot of glitter all over him. 

“What the fuck?! What the fuck is going on?!” I cannot fucking see!” Gallagher flailed about, shaking the cling film to the floor violently. He wiped at his eyes and looked around in confusion, focusing on Mickey. “I'm gonna fucking kill you!”

“Sure you are.” Mickey choked through his laughter, his stomach muscles starting to ache from laughing for so long. 

“Oh, you are in for it now.” Gallagher hissed, trying to wipe more off of his face. 

Mickey just couldn't stop laughing. He didn't wait for any more of Gallagher's retorts. He just started stumbling away, wincing as the laughing started to take a toll on his damaged throat. Cara and Kevin followed him close behind, talking about the Nicolas Cage pictures. 

“Mr Milkovich, the assembly is in twenty minutes and I reckon he's going to spend all that time trying to get it all off.” Cara said, adjusting her bag on her shoulder. 

“Okay. Has Zoe got the pictures?” Mickey croaked, gingerly rubbing at his throat. 

“Still printing them. She's got a lot to print. I don't think she's even halfway at the moment.” Kevin snorted. 

“Shit, is that costing her?” Mickey looked at the two of them. This was his prank and he had no intention of making these students pay for any of it. 

“Probably. It'll be going on her card.” Kevin explained. “We pay to put credits on. Like five bucks will get you a hundred credits I think. A hundred credits could get you I think ten sheets? One sided?”

“How many pages is she printing? Like ten?” Mickey guessed with a shrug of his shoulders. 

Cara burst out laughing. “Mr Milkovich, we're covering every surface in his classroom. From the floor to the ceiling. All the desks, all the book covers, every single surface. It's gonna take a few hundred I'd say.”

“Fuck. I mean- shi- um. Fudge.” Mickey stuttered his way to the end of the sentence rolling his eyes as the students laughed. He probably shouldn't be enjoying hanging out with teenagers so much but these were his mathletes. He could make an exception for them, right?

“Let's go to the library and check on Zoe.” Kevin said. 

“Mr Milkovich?”

Mickey spun around to see Mr Thompson, the geography teacher, striding towards him looking confused. “Mr Thompson?”

“Why are you not heading to the assembly?” He demanded. “I've been searching for you and Mr Gallagher all over the place.”

“Um- it's not for another twenty minutes?” Mickey raised his eyebrows at him. 

“Not for the teachers. All teachers are required to show up a half hour before for a briefing.” He stared at Mickey, seemingly unable to take his eyes away. Mickey was about to question it when he remembered his neck and face.

“Well, shit. I didn't know. All right, I guess I have to go.” Mickey looked to Cara and Kevin in a panic. 

“We'll handle it. Don't worry.” She smiled. “Go. Oh, don't forget to call Mr Gallagher the menstruation fairy.” 

“What?” Mickey asked in confusion. 

“It's the best we could come up with now get out of here so you can see when he gets to the assembly!” Cara shooed him away while Mr Thompson shook his head in annoyance over the antics. 

“Gallagher is in the bathroom back there.” Mickey said as the two teachers started making their way to the assembly hall. 

“No he's already on his way. I found him before. Now hurry the fuck up. We're waiting.” Thompson growled. 

They walked in an awkward silence the rest of the way, opening the big creaky doors to the hall. As soon as Mickey walked in there was a collective gasp from the teachers that still hadn't seen his bruises. Mickey made a mental note to check on them and make sure they weren't any worse than before. He sat down in the nearest seat and waited impatiently for the vice principal to start talking. 

She got up from her seat and greeted everyone, her eyes darting to Mickey every now and then, and started talking about yet another budget cut. Mickey zoned out. He looked around and spotted Gallagher sitting at the back of the group glaring at Mickey. From this distance, he looked like he was a coal miner that had just finished a long day in the mines. His crisp white shirt was now wet and covered in glitter. If Mickey shone a light on Gallagher, he would sparkle like Edward Cullen. Gallagher was mouthing something at Mickey but he couldn't tell what. Mickey just smiled sarcastically and returned his gaze to the front of the room just as Jeff was getting up to speak. 

“Okay, so, first announcement. Monica has been offered the job of vice principal at a school in London and will be leaving us in two weeks. If anyone is able to cover some of her classes until we find her replacement please let me know. But otherwise, congratulations, Monica!” 

Mickey zoned out again. These staff meeting were always so boring and Mickey couldn't stand them. It was never anything he really cared about or anything that affected him. Except for the budget cuts. But he already had enough supplies to last the rest of the year after Mandy and the others had all pooled together to get him a Staples gift card for his birthday.

When it hit ten o'clock, Mickey's anxiety made its presence known. The teachers all moved to the seats on the stage and the students started piling in. Mickey could already see Gallagher's laptop set up and waiting to mortify him. Mickey found comfort in the thought that Cara and the other mathletes were in the process of covering his classroom in Nicolas Cage pictures. It wasn't enough to settle his stomach though. 

Jeff made the usual announcements of rule reminders and Monica's job offer. Then the teachers started their announcements. Gallagher was sitting down the end looking smug as shit even with his glitter covered face. After five minutes of Mickey squirming in his seat, Gallagher finally stood up. A lot of the students were laughing at him but they were going to be laughing a hell of a lot more at Mickey in a minute. 

“Good morning everyone. I understand, you must be wondering why I'm covered in glitter. It's because-”

“It's because you're the menstruation fairy!” A kid yelled from the audience. Everyone burst into laughter while Gallagher just smiled and looked out at them all, a fire burning in his eyes. 

“It's because, Mr Milkovich glitter bombed me, with glue, in retaliation to the prank I pulled on him last Friday. I am telling you all this, because I would like to share with you the video my brother got of the prank. Please enjoy.” Gallagher walked across the stage to where his laptop was waiting behind the curtains. He hit a few buttons and suddenly Mickey was walking across the staff parking lot on the wall behind them. 

The projector was usually used for presentations or for important school projects. It was supposed to be used by the IT teacher only due to it being broken so many times. Somehow, Gallagher had convinced the strictest teacher Mickey had ever dealt with, to let him use the projector without supervision. 

Mickey's entire body started burning up as everyone was laughing at him. Mickey looked away from the big white wall/projector screen and put his head in his hands. There was no way his stupid prank had topped this. Mickey was forever going to be made fun of while Gallagher was just dealing with a little bit of glitter and a few pictures of Nicolas Cage. 

The assembly wrapped up pretty fast after that, all the teachers leaving to go get ready for their classes while the student's had their first break even though they had only just gotten to school. Mickey loved these days sometimes. It was always an easy morning that came with a sleep in. But today was just the absolute worst. 

As Mickey left the hall, students were laughing at him, he could hear people talking about him. One kid even jokingly tried to scare him. Mickey was ready to break bones by the time he reached his classroom. He sat down and opened up his emails when he remembered Cara and the others suddenly. He took off across the school and skidded to a halt down outside Gallagher's classroom. He was about to go in when Gallagher himself called out to him. 

“Can I help you, Milkovich?” He snapped. 

Mickey spun around and smiled. “No. No, this is perfect.” 

Gallagher eyed him up suspiciously before pushing past him to go into his classroom. “What the fuck?!”

Mickey peeked in and gasped. Cara and the others had completely outdone themselves. The floor was covered in one giant picture of Nicolas Cage, pieced together with a hundred sheets. Every single surface you could see was covered.

“Are you fucking kidding me?! What, the glitter and fucking fairy nickname weren't enough?!” Gallagher spat at him. 

“Whoa, wow, this is better than I expected.” Mickey snorted. 

“How the fuck did you find time to do this?!” Gallagher marveled, spinning around to look at it all. 

“I have my ways.” Mickey shrugged and leaned against the door frame. 

“Cara?”

“Cara.” Mickey smiled. “Anyway, I need to get ready for class. Have a good day.”


	5. Chapter 5

Three hours. Three fucking hours was how long it had taken to get all of the Nicolas Cage pictures gone. Ian had started to count how many pictures there were but he lost count around the three hundred mark. He couldn't fucking believe it. He had to spend the rest of the day in his Nicolas Cage of a classroom, teaching his students in the mess, until he could get rid of them all after school. He didn't go home until almost seven o'clock, being forced to skip his trip to the gym.

Ian was desperate to come up with a way to get Milkovich back but he had to focus on his basketball team. He'd spent the rest of the week meeting up with Carl and Lip and even Debbie for help to think of something but so far, no one had come up with anything. He decided to put it to the back of his mind and hold an extra practice session for the team. Their competition was next week and they were well overdue for a pep talk. 

His Wednesday was almost done. He just had to finish the training, get through his last class, and then he was free to go home and sleep. Right now, the team were getting on his nerves. They weren't fucking listening and they were really off their game. 

“Joey! Pass the god damn ball to Matt before I get in there and do it myself!” Ian screeched as his phone started ringing. He glanced down at it to see Fiona's name flashing at him. She could wait. Ian ignored the call and put his phone back in his pocket only for it to start ringing a second later. Ian pulled it out and saw that it was Lip this time. He was about to answer when Joey fell over. He ignored the call and ran onto the court. 

“You all right?” He sighed as Matt gave him a hand up. 

“Yeah, I'm all good. Can I sit out for a bit though?” Joey looked at him desperately. 

“I need-” Ian's phone interrupted him once more with a call from Fiona again. “Yeah, everyone take five while I deal with this call.” Ian walked away from them all and put the phone to his ear. “Someone better be fucking dying. I'm at work. What is it?” 

“Ian… Ian, Frank's- he's dead.” 

“I'm sorry what?” 

“He finally found his own limit and overdosed. Someone found him this morning behind the Alibi.” Fiona said weakly. It was evident in her voice that she'd been crying. He could hear someone else crying in the background and could just make out Vee yelling at someone.

“I don't- I don't understand.” Ian stammered out. “You're serious?” 

“Yes. Are you okay? Do you need someone to pick you up?”

“No I- I'll be okay. I'm just- I'll see you soon.” Ian hung up and slipped his phone into his pocket, staring into space as his mind filled with white noise. His body felt weird and out of place. He couldn't feel his fingertips and he could hear someone calling to him in the distance. He felt a hand on his arm and suddenly everything came back with a dizzying speed. 

“Mr Gallagher? Are you okay?” 

Ian looked around to see Matt looking at him nervously. He hadn't even realized he'd fallen to his knees. “I um- I need to go.” He stammered out. “My dad died.” 

“Oh shit. I'm so sorry. Oi Danny! Go and get the principal! Now!” Matt yelled over his shoulder. “Come on, Sir, come and sit down on the bleachers.”

Ian let himself be pulled to his feet and guided to the bleachers where he sat with his head in his hands. All Ian's life, he'd thought about this day. He'd wanted it to happen a lot of the time. He'd even been tempted to make it happen once. He still wasn't prepared for the onslaught of feelings that came with the knowledge of his dad being dead. He was a fucking asshole and a useless father but he was still his father in a way. Even if he wasn't his biological one. Ian was so confused and relieved and angry and happy all at once. He had no idea how to process any of this. 

The day passed by in a weird blur of someone driving him to the south side and his old childhood home. When he went to bed that night it all kept flashing in front of his eyes, just random moments from the day. Vee bringing over dinner for them, Fiona accidentally making a joke and making them all laugh only for it to be stifled suddenly. As if they shouldn't be laughing at all because their dad had died. 

But the fact of the matter was, absolutely none of them knew what the proper reaction was here. Ian hadn't seen of spoken to Frank for at least six months. Lip hadn't seen him in a year but had spoken to him on the phone a few times in that year. Carl and Debbie had him show up and crash their double date two weeks before hand. Fiona had been visiting Carl and had seen him yesterday, stealing food from the fridge yet again. For their entire lives, he'd been a burden. A cockroach. A piece of chewing gum stuck to the bottom of their shoe for a lifetime. They'd grown use to it and had accepted that it was stuck there, but they hadn't stopped trying to get rid of it. Until they'd all just bought new shoes. 

Carl and Debbie were still living in the old family house, but otherwise there was nothing keeping any of them in this part of life. Everyone had moved on and yet, in just a day, they had all been brought back here to mourn the loss of a terrible man. It was extremely difficult for any of them to process it properly. Ian just hoped it would all be over as fast as possible. 

*

“Please, make sure you guys study, okay? I feel like we've been focusing too much on stupid pranks than actually studying. Our competition is this Saturday. Do not forget your uniforms and do not forget money for food. It was a mission to even go to this competition so please don't do anything to screw it up.” 

“Sir, yes, sir!” Cara saluted him with a roll of her eyes. “What shade should I go next?”

“I don't know, Cara, the same shade as the rest of your hair?” Mickey sighed. “Has anyone told you off for it yet?”

“Several times.” She smiled, stuffing her books into her bag. “Haven't actually listened to them but I'm pretty sure it's happened.” 

“Sticking it to the man as per usual.” Mickey snorted. “Kevin, how's your brother doing?”

“He's a lot better now. Just appendicitis. He'll be out of hospital tomorrow.” Kevin smiled up at him. 

“Awesome. Good to hear. I-” Mickey snapped his mouth shut as Lucy walked in with her bag looking nervous. “All right. Everyone out now.” 

“We're already leaving.” Zoe pointed out as Cara strolled out with her headphones in. 

“Not fast enough. Out!” Mickey shooed them all away before smiling up at Lucy. “How are you? Your first day back been okay?” 

“It's been fine, Mickey. I'm just anxious to get home. Wanna see Gemma and Steve.” She smiled weakly. Her bruises were completely gone, no sign at all, but Mickey's neck was still slightly bruised and every time she saw it she would get tears in her eyes. 

“Okay. Gimme a sec. I gotta mark a fuck tonne of tests tonight, god help me.” Mickey sighed. He slung his bag over his shoulder and made sure he had his keys in one hand before heaving the heavy pile of papers into his arms. 

He locked up behind him before following Lucy down the halls and out into the staff car park. Every time Mickey set foot on the concrete he was reminded of the stupid prank. Kids were still laughing at him occasionally but they were also still calling Gallagher the 'Menstrual Fairy'. He was getting increasingly fucked off and Mickey was loving every second of it. He had been hoping to see him today to gloat about the competition this Friday but no one had seen him since lunch time. 

“So, this morning, Mandy said she might have news tonight.” Mickey said once they were in the car and on their way to his place. 

“Oh really?” Lucy sighed, her head against the window. 

“Yeah. I think we're probably going to end up having a few drinks. You don't mind that do you?” Mickey glanced at her as they stopped at an intersection. 

“Um, I kind of just want to be alone tonight. I won't come to yours. I'll just go back to Nika's and spend time with the kids.” Lucy said softly. 

“You sure your first day went okay? Did anyone say anything?” Mickey looked hard at her. The bags under her eyes made her look years older. Her hair was done messily and her clothes were crumpled. Mickey had known her long enough to know that this usually meant she was in a really low place. She wasn't taking care of herself and she wasn't ready to let Mickey do it for her. 

“My day was fine, Mickey. A couple of people asked how my holiday was and I told them I was visiting family out of town. I told them it was fine. I'm fine, Mickey.” Lucy looked at him with a reassuring smile. 

“I just-” Mickey was cut off as the car behind him blared their horn for him to go. “I'm fucking going!” Mickey yelled in anger, speeding off up the road. “I just want to make sure. Why don't you and the kids stay at mine tonight? No drinks, just a quiet night in.” 

“I just want to be left alone tonight, Mickey.” Lucy repeated more firmly. “Tomorrow night we can. You and Mandy celebrate whatever it is.” 

“Okay. So long as you're okay.” Mickey couldn't keep the worry out of his voice. 

“I said I'm fucking fine, Mickey.” Lucy snapped, regret washing over her face instantly. “Sorry. I didn't mean to snap, I just- I'm just tired.” 

“It's okay.” Mickey mumbled. 

They drove the rest of the way in silence, which in retrospect wasn't that long, but the silence made it pass by excruciatingly slow. They picked up Gemma and Steve and Mickey dropped the three of them off at Nika and Svetlana's. When he arrived at his own home, Mandy was already there, pouring out an expensive looking bottle of champagne. 

“Hey.” Mickey sighed when he walked in, dropping his keys on the coffee table. 

“Hi! What's up with you? Be excited and happy like me.” Mandy frowned at him. 

“Just Lucy. She's not okay and she won't admit it to me so I can't help her yet.” Mickey groaned, falling down onto the couch. 

“Just give her time. It was a traumatic experience and she can't even begin to move on when you still have your bruises and Gemma asks about Matthew everyday.” Mandy advised, sitting down next to him and handing him his mug of champagne. Classy. “For now, be happy!”

“Why? What's the news?” Mickey forced a smile, trying to perk himself up. 

“I'm gonna be head chef at the new restaurant opening up a block away from my apartment!” Mandy burst out, sloshing champagne everywhere. 

“Mandy, that's so awesome! Congratulations!” Mickey rejoiced. “When did you find out? When do you start? Tell me everything!” 

“Okay, so today, they called me in earlier than usual and I just assumed they needed help for the lunch hour but they were shut when I got there and I was like 'whaaat?' but then they said we need to talk all serious and I was freaking out thinking I had lost my job somehow.” Mandy took in a breath, her eyes alight with glee. “We didn't talk there though. We drove to the new restaurant which has the name up now and everything. 'Vite Di Pomodoro'. The kitchen, all mine.” 

“That is so good, Mandy. I'm so happy for you.” Mickey grinned. 

“I get to pick my staff and everything. I'll be there for the interviews and I get to create my own dish and everything!” Mandy looked like she was about to cry. She'd been working for Nika for almos two years now, working her way up the ranks in the kitchen. Even though she didn't have a drop of italian blood in her, Nika still trusted her to be sous chef at her restaurant and now she was getting her own kitchen. Mickey couldn't be happier for her. 

They spent the rest of the night finishing off the two bottles of champagne, laughing about everything to the point where Mickey's stomach hurt whenever he laughed. He woke up with a mild hangover and extreme annoyance at the fact that he didn't manage to mark any of his tests. At least he'd actually brought them home with him. He blamed Mandy for it anyway. She was gone before Mickey had even woke up though, preventing him from calling her out for it. 

Mickey left for work as soon as possible, grabbing his much needed coffee on the way. When he arrived at the school, he got straight to marking the tests. He was about halfway done when the bell rang and kids started piling in. The day went by slowly with Mickey wondering if he would bump into Gallagher at some point. He was super excited for the competition that weekend and he wanted to gloat. Mickey found himself thinking about Ian a lot in general sometimes. He'd even caught himself thinking about him in a sexual way once. That was a shock for him to say the least. 

Mickey was just eating his lunch alone in his classroom when an email alert popped up from Jeff. He clicked on it and read it with a groan. 

'Hi everyone, 

If anyone has a free lesson tomorrow that they can use for one of Ian Gallagher's health classes, that would be amazing. Also looking for someone to cover his first class on Monday next week but you might not be needed for that. Please let me know ASAP!!!

Thanks, 

Jeff Glover.'

“Shit.” Mickey commented out loud, remembering there was no one in the room a minute later. Mickey sat back and stared at the email. Why was Gallagher out for the week? He'd be missing the basketball game. Maybe this was his stupid way of preparing for it. It was supposed to be a big game, from what he'd heard in the hallways, snippets of conversation as he walked through the school. 

The thought that he wouldn't have to deal with Ian Gallagher was deeply upsetting for some reason. Mickey felt sad for him and he couldn't figure out why. The more he thought about it though, the more he convinced himself it was because he couldn't gloat at all. Most of the kids had forgotten already about Gallagher's stupid car park prank. Mickey's prank on the other hand, the name 'menstrual fairy' had stuck. People were making Nicolas Cage jokes and apparently all day on Wednesday he'd still had bits of glitter stuck to him. Mickey was about to close the email when he got another one from Jeff, directly to him and not all of the staff. 

'Hi Mickey, 

Look, I hate to do this to you but I know you have a free period in the afternoon tomorrow and you're my only hope. I can't get anyone to cover Ian's period. I wouldn't ask if I didn't have any other choice. Please. I'll owe you big time. Next time Ian asks for funding over you, I'll let you have it. You can have it all for next month. Just please???'

Mickey let out a groan of frustration, getting ready to type out a kind email to decline and say he had plans of some kind, when his phone rang. Mickey already knew it was Jeff and he was dreading picking it up. He stared at it hopelessly for another ten seconds before he finally picked it up. 

“Jeff, please don't make me do this.” 

“Mickey, I will give you the funding for whatever you want. You can take your team to fucking England if you have to just please. They just have a test to do so you could sit there and play on your phone the entire time if you wanted. Please, Mickey.” 

Mickey clenched his eyes shit tight and sighed. “Fine. You fucking owe me though.” 

“Calm down. It's hardly like you have to have Ian there with you.” Jeff snorted. “Thank you so much!” 

Jeff hung up before Mickey could complain some more, leaving him to hang up the phone and call Mandy on his mobile. It took a few rings for her to pick up but she finally did sounding out of breath and frustrated. 

“What is it? What do you want?”

“I- what are you doing? Are you at work?”

“I'm- running late for work. I literally just ran inside. I need to go now what is it? Is it important?” Mandy demanded. 

“Okay, that was definitely a lie. Whatever. Um, are we still on for tomorrow night? I have a feeling I'm definitely going to need our drinking session and that you're gonna hate what I have to bitch about.” Mickey smiled as he heard someone in the background. 

“I uh- tomorrow- tomorrow night? That- ahh, that's not possible. I have to be at the new restaurant for- for head chef things. Mickey, can I please call you back?” Mandy said shakily. 

“I seriously hope you're not doing what I think you're doing. Call me when you're free. Have fun.” Mickey snorted and ended the call before Mandy could deny his insinuations. He smiled to himself as he finished up his lunch and continued on with his day, trying to figure out why Gallagher was away. 

*

Everyone was talking loud. Too loud. Ian didn't even know half of these people. Apparently they all knew Frank though. It was hard not to. He had a reputation and now everyone was drinking for him. There wasn't enough people in the world that could make up for the consumption of alcohol that Frank did. It had been a very long day and Ian just wanted everyone to go home and leave the Gallagher's alone. But it was only two in the afternoon and the wake had only just started. 

“Ian?” 

“Hmm?” Ian looked up from where he'd been staring at a groove in the table while the party went on around him. Fiona was smiling down at him in sympathy. “What's up?”

“I hate to do this but could you run to the store and get some more beer? Corona? I can't stand anything else.”

“Uh, yeah, sure.” Ian smiled and stood up. “Anything else you need? For the party or whatever else?” 

“Umm, I think we're almost out of toilet paper.” Fiona squinted as she tried to think. “Yeah that's it. Thanks so much, Ian.”

“Not a problem. I'll be back soon.” Ian sculled the rest of his Dr Pepper and grabbed his keys and wallet. He pushed through the throng of people. A couple of people muttered condolences to him but everyone else was already too drunk to care. When Ian reached the grocery store, he went straight for the beer, grabbing a twelve pack before picking up toilet paper and heading to the checkouts. 

“Hi there, sir. How's your day going? Going somewhere fancy in that suit?” The cashier said in a rush as he stepped up. 

“Uh- no. It was my dad's funeral today.” Ian muttered stupidly. 

“Oh- oh I'm- I'm so sorry.” She stammered. 

“Don't be. Sorry I mentioned it. I didn't mean to put you in that awkward position.” Ian sighed, pulling out his card to pay. The cashier said nothing as she out it through. Ian typed in his pin and stared at the screen, waiting for it to accept so he could leave. Except it didn't. It declined because the entire world was against Ian today. 

“Sorry, maybe I did the wrong pin. Can I please try again?” Ian almost started crying. He was so fed up. She put the transaction through again and right when Ian went to swipe he saw it. His card had expired. “Fuck. My card expired. Um… I'm gonna have to come back. I have an emergency one at my work.” 

“Not a problem. I'll be waiting.” She smiled at him sadly. 

Ian walked off without another word and went straight to his car, slamming the door hard before letting out a shout of frustration. He wanted to cry. He wanted to bawl his eyes out and throw things but he was stuck in his car outside a grocery store. 

Ian bashed the steering wheel, the horn beeping for a second, before he turned his car on and drove all the way across town to Lincoln high to retrieve his emergency credit card. By the time he got there, the day was almost finished. Thankfully the hallways were empty though. He zoned out as he made the familiar route through the school to his classroom. When he opened the door, he was shocked to find everyone talking to everyone. 

“Whoa, what the hell is going on? Where's your teacher?” Ian asked in confusion. 

“He said he'd be back soon.” Some kid who's name Ian could never remember piped up. It was some stupid white boy name and he looked like most of the other white kids in his classes. 

“Who's your sub?” Ian asked as he moved to his desk and unlocked his bottom drawer with his key. 

“Mr Milkovich.” 

“Of course it's him.” Ian sighed, grabbing his card and standing up straight. “Okay, are you guys doing okay? You're understanding everything o- you know this is an open book test, right?” 

“What?!” A bunch of students shouted out. 

“Oh for god's sake. Okay, just do whatever for the rest of the lesson. We can redo the test next week with your books. There's no point now. You won't have enough time.” Ian sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose in a weak attempt to quell the headache that was pounding in his head. 

“Thanks, Sir.” 

“Not a problem. I'll see you guys later.” Ian gave them a lame wave before leaving the classroom again, muttering insults for Milkovich under his breath. He made his way towards his classroom, hoping he'd bump into him. Unfortunately for Ian, he did. 

“Gallagher. What the hell are you doing here?” Milkovich called out. 

“I needed to grab something from my desk. Why are my students doing a test in silence without their books? I said in my notes that it was an open book test. Now they have to do it again next week.” Ian snapped. 

“Whoa, calm down there, sparkly. I didn't get any notes. I was just told there was a test that needed doing and that I wouldn't have to do anything.” Milkovich held his hands up in defense. 

“Whatever. Just- let them fuck around for the rest of the period. There isn't enough time to actually get any work done. I have to go. Someone's waiting for me.” Ian sighed and pushed past him. 

“Hey, why aren't you taking your own lesson? You're obviously not sick if you're here.” Milkovich called behind him but Ian kept on walking. “Why are you dressed so dark, Menstruation Fairy? Who's funeral?”

Ian's entire body went cold as he stopped dead in his tracks. He looked over his shoulder at a confused Milkovich and almost smirked. “My dad's.” Ian continued walking, feeling like complete and utter shit while simultaneously relishing in the fact that he could hold this over Milkovich forever. 

The entire journey from school to the grocery store and back home again, Ian was so confused and upset. He wanted to go back and argue with Milkovich and make him apologise. He almost felt betrayed somehow. It was stupid. He desperately needed a hug and he felt incredibly depressed and lonely. He felt like punching the air with joy because Mickey Milkovich had just made the worst joke someone could make in front of a grieving person. What the fuck was going on with his life?

The party had lessened a lot in the hour that he'd been gone. There was about half the amount of people than before and, thankfully, the majority of them were sober. There were just a few die hard heading down the same road as Frank, taking advantage of the free alcohol. Fiona was out in the back garden with Mike, sitting in his lap with his arms around her waist. Ian felt a stab of jealousy at the sight but he quickly brushed it off. 

He walked down the path and sat the box of beer on the table for her. “I hate everything and everyone.” 

“Jesus, what the hell took you so long?” Fiona looked at him curiously as he slumped into an empty seat. 

“My card expired so I had to drive all the way to school to get my emergency one. Bumped into Milkovich who was fucking over my students with a test, told him what to do and right as I was leaving he made a funeral joke about my suit.” 

“What a fucking asshole!” Fiona burst out loudly, earning her a few looks from people. She ignored them though. “Who the fuck says that to someone that's grieving?”

“I don't think he knew. I asked Jeff not to mention it to anyone unless they asked.” Ian yawned. “It's my own fault really. Especially after the glitter bombing.” Ian closed his eyes and rested his head on his hand, enjoying the warmth of the sun. 

“Still, I feel like it would be obvious.” Mike commented, rubbing his thumb idly over Fiona's hand. 

Ian stared at it for a moment before getting up and stealing a couple of beers from the box. “I don't really care. I won't see him until Monday and then I can make him squirm.” 

“What is this feud between you two? I've always been confused whenever Fi's mentioned it.” Mike asked, grabbing a beer for himself. 

“Fiona, can you tell him? I'm gonna go find Debbie and Carl. Haven't spoken to them that much today.” 

“Yeah, no problem. They're upstairs in their bedrooms as far as I remember.” Fiona smiled. “Okay, so Ian works with this guy...” Fiona's voice trailed off as Ian walked back into the house, accepting a hug from a drunk Kev before heading upstairs, calling out for Carl. 

“In here.” He called from Fiona's old bedroom. 

It had been a while since he'd actually set foot in that room and it was a shock to see it looking so different. It was much cleaner for starters. There was decent furniture in there and Carl was lying on the bed with a girl. Ian blinked and confusion washed over him. She was wearing a pants suit and had short cropped hair, almost as short as Ian's, but a full face of make-up.

“Hi, I'm Sam.” She smiled up at him. 

“Ian, this is my partner, Sam.” Carl said. “They're non-binary and they use they and their.” 

“Oh, wow. That's- different.” Ian stammered. He couldn't get over how they were both feminine and masculine in one go. It was an impressive feat. Ian mentally shook his head and plastered on a smile. “I'm so sorry. I'm being incredibly offensive and rude. It's- it's been a long day.” 

“No, it's fine. I get it all the time and you're dealing with a lot today. Just don't misgender me and we'll get along fine.” They smiled up at Ian. “I'm sorry we have to meet under these circumstances but I'm happy to meet you all just the same. Carl talks about you guys so much.” 

“Yeah, he talks about you too. Thinks the world of you.” Ian sat down on the couch and let himself sink into it as Debbie walked in. 

“Hey, guys.” She mumbled, sitting down next to Ian, immediately curling up into a ball almost on top of him. 

He wrapped his arm around her and kissed the top of her head. “Hey, ginger. How you doing?”

“Fine. Just want everyone to go so we can relax properly.” She sighed, wriggling further down so her head was resting in Ian's lap. 

“Don't we all.” 

*

“He said what?!” 

“He said 'my dad's' and he looked at me like I was the one who killed him. I can't believe how badly I fucked up.” Mickey groaned, putting his head in his hands. 

“Shit.” Lucy snorted. “He's never going to let that one go.” 

“I know. No prank or insult I ever do or say will ever get him to stop.” Mickey said, staring at his empty beer bottle glumly. 

“Just apologise to him. Next time you see him just explain that you didn't know and you never would have made that joke if you had known and that you're incredibly sorry.” Lucy said simply. 

“I doubt he'll accept it. He's gonna want to hold this over my head and I am fu- hey, Gemma.” Mickey just stopped himself from swearing as Gemma waddled into the room, her doll dragging behind her like some cliche movie scene. 

“Hi, sweetie. You okay?” Lucy asked, picking her up straight away and holding her close. Gemma mumbled something and Lucy started walking away, comforting her with whatever her problem was. Mickey sat back on the couch and let out a yawn, staring at the blank TV. It had been a much quieter Friday night than usual. He was bummed out that he couldn't spend it with Mandy. He loved being with Lucy and he was especially glad that she seemed to be in a better mood tonight but Friday's was always his night with Mandy. They didn't always drink, a lot of the time they argued, but they were their Friday nights and now they had stopped. It was making it impossible for Mickey to enjoy himself at all. 

Lucy returned looking slightly depressed again, falling down onto the couch with a sigh. “She had a bad dream.”

“Same one?” Mickey raised an eyebrow. 

“Yep. Matthew finding us and hurting me.” Lucy shook her head, biting her lip before bursting into tears suddenly. 

Mickey immediately moved to comfort her, holding her close and muttering words of comfort. “Don't worry. It's going to be okay. Everything's going to be alright.” Mickey was glad Lucy couldn't see his face. It was a big fat lie because, in all honesty, Mickey had no idea how either of those kids were going to be alright. You never recover from that kind of trauma, no matter how much you think you have. Mickey was living proof of that.


	6. Chapter 6

“Did you hear about Mr Gallagher?” 

“No, what? Why has he been away?” 

“His dad died.” 

“Alright, that's enough. Give the man some respect.” 

Cara glanced over her shoulder at him and smirked. “I also heard Mr Milkovich made a funeral joke on the day of his dad's funeral to Mr Gallagher.” 

“Where the hell did you hear that?” Mickey whirled around to face her. 

Her and the rest of the mathletes were laughing at him not so subtly. “A kid was leaving their classroom when you said it. It spread around the school like wildfire once I heard.” She smirked. 

“Okay, yeah, I fucked up. Please, don't go spreading this around as 'trouble in paradise' or whatever it is.” Mickey sighed. “He didn't even give me a chance to apologise. On Monday I will and everything will go back to normal.” 

“You really think it's gonna be that easy?” Kevin laughed. “You joked about his dad's funeral on the day of the funeral. His actual dad died. Do you know how much you've fucked up?” 

Mickey stared at Kevin as the guilt washed over him for the two hundredth time since he'd said the stupid line. “Get up on stage. The lot of you. We're starting soon.” 

Come Monday morning, it was safe to say that Mickey had had the worst weekend of his life. He'd spent most of it working from home alone, occasionally wandering around his apartment, lost as to what he could do. Mandy was busy with work, Lucy was spending the weekend at her mom's and Mickey didn't have any other friends. It just left him alone with his thoughts and his guilt. Not even the joy of winning the competition could cheer him up. Although, the drive back home was an extremely fun, mini road trip. 

Mickey was sitting at his desk in school, staring into space as he tried to figure out how to apologise to Ian. He was almost scared of what Gallagher would say. Whether he was going to ignore him, yell at him, or even laugh at him. He wouldn't put it past him. Ian could react any way he wanted and he'd have every right to. The thought of not being able to play pranks on him and bicker with him in the staffroom was extremely disheartening. 

Mickey was starting to get extremely confused. He hated Gallagher's guts. Why did he feel so bad? He didn't even know Gallagher's dad was dead. Why should he be sorry? Mickey didn't want to fold so easily. He could really prove himself to be the better asshole by not apologising. Gallagher was due to prank him again. Mickey decided he would wait and see what the prank was before he said sorry. 

As the day wore on, unfortunately for Mickey, his feelings weren't cooperating with him. The more time that passed, the worse he felt. At lunch time, Mickey passed him on the way to the staffroom and Gallagher didn't even look at him. He looked like complete shit which was understandable considering he was grieving. Mickey had thought, however, that maybe trying to insult Mickey would cheer him up a little bit. It was at this point that Mickey was scared he had actually ended the big fight and that he wouldn't be able to pull fun pranks anymore. 

It was the end of the day and Mickey was in his classroom, grading tests for what felt like the millionth time. He was emotionally exhausted and had never felt so god damn guilty. He was dying to go home but he had made a promise to himself that he would get these done before he went home. It was bordering on half past four though and Mickey had reservations at Mandy's new work at six. He needed to get home and grab a shower before he went and he was slowly running out of time. Mickey dropped his pen and ran his fingers through his hair with a loud groan of frustration. 

“Mr Milkovich?”

Mickey looked up to see Cara come rolling in on her skates, skidding to a stop right in front of his desk. “Cara, what the hell are you doing here still? Why are you in your skates?” 

Cara smiled and unclasped her helmet. “Had a derby bout on today but it was cancelled so I decided to come here and skate. The halls have the perfect floors.” 

“Oh right. Sorry about the game.” Mickey shrugged. 

“You okay?” She asked carefully, rolling backwards and forwards slightly. 

“Yeah. It's just been a long day.” Mickey muttered, scratching his cheek as he fought back a yawn. 

“Did you remember to fill out the forms for the regionals?” Cara asked, sitting down on the desk behind her. She was definitely staying for a little bit. 

“No, not yet. I've got other shit to do.” Mickey sighed, glaring down at the last few papers. 

“You sure you're okay?” Cara asked again, looking at him with worry all over her face. “You still feel bad about Mr Gallagher?”

“Yeah, I just- I can't shake the guilt and I-” Mickey snapped his mouth shut. He didn't need to be talking about this kind of shit with a student. Especially Cara Winters, of all people. “Cara, you're my student. I am your teacher. We aren't friends. Go home.”

Cara's face darkened and she glared at Mickey. “Okay, fuck you.” 

“No, Cara, I'm sorry. I didn't mean it that way.” Mickey winced as the words replayed in his head. “I'm guilt- I feel guilty. I know I need to apologise but there is a stupid, stubborn and competitive part of me that feels like if I apologise to him, then it means he's won. I don't want to but I know I need to and I can't bring myself to actually make a decision.” 

Cara sighed. “I think you've just answered your own question. Look, I know I'm only eighteen, but I've been in a sort of similar situation. Kind of. Not really. I mean, I had to say sorry to another skater because I bashed her on purpose and it messed up the whole bout but that's neither here nor there.”

“Get to the point.” Mickey snorted. 

“My point is, if you know you need to, if you know it's the right thing to do, then you just have to buck up and do it. Nevermind how you feel, think how he feels.” Cara pointed out. “I gotta go. Tell me tomorrow morning what happens.” 

“Thanks.” Mickey muttered as she skated out of the room. Cara's words were ringing in his ears as he walked across the school to Gallagher's classroom. He didn't even know if he was there he just knew that if he didn't apologise as soon as possible he was going to lose it. 

He wasn't in his classroom but he was in the gym, jogging with his shirt off. His body was shiny with sweat and Mickey was frozen in the doorway as he took in the beautiful sight before him. Even from a distance he could make out the tight back muscles, the strong legs, the amazingly chiseled chest. Mickey had no idea Gallagher was this fucking hot. He spotted Mickey a moment later and immediately came to a stop. 

“What the fuck do you want?” He snapped, walking over to the bleachers to grab a towel. 

Mickey almost licked his lips when he rubbed the towel on his head. Now all Mickey could think was 'Think how he feels.'. He knew that's not what Cara had meant but shit, he wanted to touch Ian so badly right then and there. 

“I said what the fuck do you want?” Ian yelled again, hanging the towel around his neck as he walked over with his drink bottle in his mouth. It was like a wet dream come true. 

“I- I wanted to apologise for what I said last Friday. I had no idea your dad-”

“Not interested.” Ian interrupted, pushing past him and going into his classroom. 

“Ian, come on. I didn't mean-”

“Not. Interested. Now fuck off.” Gallagher growled, shutting the classroom door behind him. 

Mickey stared at it in anger before storming away. Fuck him. Mickey had tried. What more could he do? Absolutely nothing. Nothing but expect the worst prank ever. He was dreading making Gallagher this mad. It was only going to be bad for him. There was a sick part of him that was glad he had upset him so much though. 

*

“So, what do you do?” 

“I teach health at Lincoln High School but I also train the basketball team.” Ian said happily, taking a sip of his drink. 

“Oh, nice.” Greg smiled, his eyes crinkling at the corners. 

“Yeah, it's a pretty good job. My team is awesome and they win almost every game they play. I really enjoy it.” Ian said, his thoughts darkening as he inevitably was reminded of Milkovich. 

“How long have you been working there?” Greg asked, moving back as their food was set down. 

Ian smiled up at the waitress, something jolting in him as he recognised her face. “Do I know you?” 

“No. I do not think so.” She narrowed her eyes at him curiously. “Nope. Never met you before.” 

“Huh. Weird. You look so familiar.” Ian said thoughtfully. “Sorry.” Ian shook his head and returned his gaze to Greg's sparkly eyes. 

“Not a problem.” He smiled even wider. He was impossibly cute and kind. But when they'd shaken hands, nothing had changed. It had dampened his hopes for the evening but Ian had gotten over it and now he was having a good time. 

“This food looks amazing.” Ian said, tucking into it with gusto. “What was the question? Sorry, I'm just so distracted by my food.” He laughed. “I'm starving.”

“Me too.” Greg snorted. “I asked how long you'd been working at the high school for?” 

It clicked in Ian's head immediately. “That's how I know her! She's friends with Lucy and that stupid prick. She must have come into work or something.” 

“Stupid prick?” Greg raised an eyebrow, looking extremely amused. 

“This asshole. For like a year now we've been constantly bickering and arguing and almost physically fighting over who gets funding for their team's competitions.” Ian explained, begging himself not to get too into it. 

“Oh wow. That sounds- interesting.” Greg laughed, not looking interested at all. 

“It's nothing. We just pranked each other a few times but I'm just done with him now. I've fucking had enough. It's been fun but I want nothing to do with him after the joke he made.” 

“What joke?” 

“Oh, last Friday was my dad's funeral and I had to run into work to grab something but I was still in my suit and he made a joke saying 'who's funeral?' and I just said it was my dad's and walked away.” Ian sighed. What a great date this was. First he brings up Milkovich and then he brings up his dead dad. What a charmer. 

“Oh jesus. I'm- I'm so sorry.” Greg mumbled, blushing as he grew visibly uncomfortable. “What a prick though. Who says that to someone that's grieving?”

Ian couldn't help himself. Bitching about Milkovich was one of his favourite pastimes. “I know. He's such a douchebag. Like, he just walks in and takes the funding for my team's new uniform and fucks everything up and I-” Ian snapped his mouth shut as he noticed Milkovich walk into the dining area. “You are fucking kidding me.” 

“What?” Greg turned around, looking to where Ian was glaring at the back of Milkovich's head. 

“He's here. Why the fuck is he here?” Ian gritted out, sinking down in his seat. He had no want or need to talk to him. If he saw Ian, Milkovich would just end up trying to apologise again. Ian couldn't be bothered with that. 

“Maybe he's visiting his friend?” Greg suggested, facing Ian again. 

“Probably.” Ian sighed. “I'm sorry. It's- it's been a rough few days. Would you mind if we just left? We can go somewhere else or something.” 

“Not a problem. I completely get it.” Greg smiled, waving the waiter over. 

Ian stared, not even making an attempt to pay the bill, as Mickey talked to someone in the kitchen. Ian craned his head and saw his sister. The chef. How much bad fucking luck did he have to go on a date with the nicest guy ever only for it to be ruined by literally all of Milkovich's friends? 

Ian stood up when Greg did, pulling his coat off the back of his chair, panicking as Milkovich turned around. He spotted Ian instantly of course. How could he not? Ian was easily recognised with his height. Ian silently pleaded for him not to come over but, because the world just hated Ian today, he did. 

“Ian, please let me apologise.” He said immediately, glancing at Greg before returning his intense gaze to Ian. 

“It's fine. You don't need to. Just leave it.” Ian muttered, trying to appear relaxed as he put his jacket on. Truth was, Micky's presence had put him completely on edge. He'd never seen him in a suit as fancy as the one he was in now. Only ever in black pants and a shirt. He looked incredibly good and it was fucking Ian off that even after all this time, Milkovich's appearance was still having an effect on him. 

“No, it's not fine. I did a shitty thing and I-”

“I said it's fine! Now leave me the fuck alone!” Ian snapped, shocking everyone within a five foot radius. Ian glared at Milkovich before storming out, Greg hurriedly following him close behind. 

“Are you okay?” He asked hesitantly. 

“No. I'm sorry. Can we just do this another night?” Ian asked, struggling to keep back the tears he'd been holding in since the funeral. 

“Absolutely. I'll uh, I'll call you.” Greg smiled and backed away. Ian nodded weakly and muttered a goodbye. It wasn't until Greg was out of sight that Ian remembered he had picked Ian up and that Greg didn't even have Ian's number. 

“Fuck!” Ian groaned, the tears breaking free and streaming down his cheeks. 

“Ian?”

Ian spun around to see Milkovich yet again. “What do you want? Why can't you just leave me alone? I can't deal with you at the moment.” 

“I- I was just wondering if you needed a ride home? I saw what happened.” Mickey said slowly, cautiously taking a step closer.

Ian opened his mouth to say no but changed his mind at the last minute. Nodding a yes and thinking 'fuck it all to hell'. “Thanks.”

“Not a problem. I've just gotta run in and grab something from Mandy. I'll be one second.” Mickey said, darting back inside. He walked through to the kitchen, keeping well away from the actual food making section. “Yo, Mandy.”

“Mickey? I thought you were ordering.” Mandy glanced over her shoulder as she plated up food. 

“No, I uh, I'm giving Ian a lift home.” Mickey said sheepishly. “I was wondering if you could get me chicken fettuccine for two to go though?”

“Hold the fuck up. Kyle, can you finish plating those for me?” Mandy asked to some random guy. He took over and Mandy came up to Mickey. “Ian Gallagher? Is that who you're talking about? You're taking your worst enemy home?” 

“Yeah, he was here on a date and I kind of ruined it for him. His date skipped out on him with no way for him to get home. I- I'm kinda responsible for making him cry.” Mickey muttered, rubbing the back of his neck uncomfortably. 

“Jesus. Alright, yeah. I'll pack it up now.” Mandy sighed. 

She returned to her counter and Mickey left the kitchen, not wanting to endanger the food with germs or stray hairs any longer. When he came out he bumped into Nika who was leaving the office. “Hey, Nika, can I steal a bottle of wine?” 

“Of course!” Nika smiled. “You want your favourite?” 

“Please.” Mickey nodded. “I'll get Mandy to pay for it.” 

“Nonsense! You're family. It's opening night and business is booming. Don't worry about it.” Nika smiled, darting behind the bar to grab the bottle. 

“Thank you so much, Nika. I owe you one.” Mickey smiled, taking the bottle from her. He walked over to the serving counter where Mandy was bagging his food for him, barely paying attention to him as she yelled at someone else for under cooking some chicken. 

“Thanks, Mands. I'll see you, soon.” He called over his shoulder, dashing back outside to find Ian sitting in the gutter looking completely miserable. Mickey's heart went out to him. He sort of knew what he felt like. He was pretty young when his mom had died but he still remembered what it felt like back then. It was like his entire world had fallen to pieces. Somehow it had just gotten worse after that, with her death having a long lasting effect on Terry. 

“Ready to go?” Mickey asked stupidly. Of course he was. 

Ian nodded and stood up. “Thanks for doing this. You don't have to. I can call my brother.” 

“Nonsense. I got us free pasta and free wine. It'll be fine.” Mickey smiled, walking over to his car parked just down the road. Ian said nothing until they were in the car and driving. “Where am I taking you?”

“Oh, Chester Avenue. Ninety three.” 

The rest of the car ride was spent in silence, a few awkward sniffs coming from Ian's side of the car. Mickey wanted to ask exactly what had happened but he felt extremely uncomfortable. He wanted to try and apologise again but he had no idea how it would go down. For some insane reason, he desperately wanted to make things okay between the two men, once and for all. 

“So, I-”

“Please don't. Just- please.” Ian sighed, not lifting his head from the window. 

Mickey nodded and finished the drive in silence, pulling up outside of a decent looking apartment building. Not expensive but definitely not dirt cheap like Mickey's. “Do you- are you okay getting in?”

Ian looked back at Mickey and managed to smile slightly. “I'm okay getting into my own apartment, Mickey.” 

“Did you want some of this fettuccine?” Mickey asked, gesturing with his thumb over his shoulder at the now lukewarm pasta. 

Ian hesitated. He glanced at it, taking in a deep breath before sighing loudly. “Alright then. Get out of the car.” 

“Pasta it is.” Mickey nodded with a smile. He turned the car off and grabbed the pasta before getting out and following Ian up three flights of stairs. 

They stopped at his door and Ian turned around to look at him nervously. “Please- please take your shoes off before you leave the door mat. Please don't touch anything either. Just- I- I have things just the way I like it.” 

Mickey nodded, not thinking anything of it. He knew what he meant. He got super pissed in the morning if Mandy had moved something from its original spot. Ian unlocked the door and went inside, slipping his shoes off before putting them into a coat closet right next to the door. When Mickey walked in he was shocked at how large the place was. It hadn't seemed that big from the outside. His open planned living room and kitchen looked bigger than the entire building. 

The place was comfortably furnished with no signs of anyone living there at all. As Mickey walked through in his slightly sweaty socks, he felt more and more like he was in one of those show homes. The place was immaculate. Every surface that could sparkle, sparkled. It looked like Mickey had walked in on a magazine photo shoot. The only thing that seemed out of place were the two men standing there awkwardly. 

“Nice place, man.” Mickey managed to get out finally, handing the food to a reaching Ian. 

“Thanks. Sorry, it's- yeah.” Ian muttered and turned his back on Mickey, busying himself with plates. 

Mickey didn't know what to do so he just stood there, watching the way Ian moved, the muscles in his back moving beneath his shirt. Ian turned around and caught him staring, both of them looking away immediately. Mickey wasn't entirely sure how he had gotten himself into this situation. When he thought about it, he was convinced he really hated Ian still. But he felt bad. He felt bad for the lame joke and for how terribly Ian's date had gone because of Mickey. This was just making sure they were even again. To get things back to the way they were. 

Seeing Ian was the best part of his job. He loved insulting him and playing pranks on him. If he lost all of that, his job would immediately lose all its appeal. Except for the mathletes. Mickey really enjoyed that. He also loved having Lucy as his friend. But Ian, he was a whole other story. He was entertaining and always somehow managed to come up with new insults. Mickey spent a decent amount of his spare time thinking about different insults for him. 

The biggest thing that kept Mickey fighting for his favourite enemy, was the fact that Ian was the first person not to shun him or make fun of him for coming from the South side. He understood it all and he never used it against him. In the year they'd known each other, with every insult Ian had managed to throw at Mickey, not once had he used his troubled past. It was one thing Mickey was grateful for. 

“Okay, do you want to watch TV or something?” Ian asked, carrying two plates in one hand and two glasses of wine in the other. 

Mickey quickly took one of each from him and thought about it. “Let's watch something. If we're left to talk we'll probably start arguing again.” 

“True.” Ian snorted, sitting down on the couch carefully. He set his food and drink down on the coffee table before grabbing the remote as Mickey sat down next to him. They settled on an episode of Family Guy to lighten the weird tension between the two of them, spending the next four hours eating and watching a Family Guy marathon. 

The episode ended and Mickey let out a groan, stretching out his legs and arms, his shirt lifting above his waistline slightly. Mickey relaxed suddenly and looked at Ian who was looking at his stomach before darting his eyes away. 

“You probably shouldn't be driving home.” He yawned, turning the TV off before getting up and taking their dishes into the kitchen. 

Mickey got up and followed him, leaning against the kitchen island to watch him clean them. “Why's that?” Mickey asked, feeling slightly more drunk now that he was standing up. 

“You're too tired and you've been drinking. It's after midnight.” Ian smiled at him. 

“Shit, are you serious?” Mickey asked in shock, feeling his pocket for his phone. “Damn, left my phone in the car. Mandy is gonna be pissed. I was supposed to give her a lift home when she finished at half eleven.” 

“Well shit.” Ian laughed. 

“Think you're a little drunker than you think.” Mickey grinned. 

Ian rolled his eyes and leaned against the counter, fixing Mickey with a smile that was doing things to his stomach that Mickey had never felt before when looking at Ian. “Same goes to you man. Wine is not good for you.” 

“You think so?” 

“I know so. Wine is like the funding. Only I know how to handle it.” Ian looked away into the distance dramatically, gesturing like he was in a movie. 

“You're a fucking dick.” Mickey snorted, shaking his head. “Worst attempt at an insult ever. You definitely are drunk.” 

Ian started laughing, leaning across the counter to get in Mickey's personal space. “I hate you so much, you know that?” 

“Feelings mutual.” Mickey smiled, staring into his eyes, a longing bursting from deep within, the shock freezing him. Mickey tried to ignore it. Tried to blame it on the alcohol but there was no denying it, Mickey wanted to kiss Ian. 

And Ian wanted to kiss Mickey. Mickey could tell from the look in his eyes, the way he was ever so slightly moving even closer, his eyes darting down to Mickey's lips. Mickey wanted to move closer and he wanted to pull away. He looked into Ian's eyes and something happened. There was a flash of something. Ian's eyes changed for just a few seconds. Green. The word came to Mickey as if he'd known it all his life. In that moment, it hit him properly. Ian fucking Gallagher was about to kiss him and Mickey suddenly found himself pulling away before they'd even touched. It was Gallagher. They hated each other. They literally just confessed their hate to each other. 

“I guess I should go.” Mickey muttered, clearing his throat as he took a step back.

“Right. Thanks for dinner and everything.” Ian grunted, turning away. 

Mickey stared at his back for a second before just walking out, running his hands through his hair as he made his way out of the building. What the fuck was that? Mickey let out a groan as he climbed into his car, feeling like he had just fucked everything up. He grabbed his phone and called Mandy, ignoring the ten texts and five missed calls from her. 

“Where the fuck were you?!” She screeched the second she picked it up. 

“I got held up, okay? It's- something happened.” Mickey uttered out, unsure of how to explain it. 

“Whoa, you okay? You sound… weird. What happened?” Mandy asked urgently, abandoning her anger. 

“Well, you remember how I took Ian home?” Mickey pinched the bridge of his nose as the regret started to wash over him. 

“Yeah. Did you fight? You didn't hurt him too bad did you? Mickey, you didn't- you didn't ki-”

“No! Don't be fucking stupid! No way. I can't believe you'd even ask me that.” Mickey quickly reassured her. 

“Sorry, I've just never seen you get so emotional over someone like you do Ian Gallagher. I had to ask.” Mandy sighed. “What happened then? The suspense is killing me.” She said sarcastically.

“Shut up. So, we had dinner and drank some wine and watched Family Guy all night. But when he finally decided to clean up the dishes, we were just sort of being dicks to each other and we- we almost kissed.” Mickey ended awkwardly, unable to shake the weird feelings surrounding him. “Mandy?”

“What did you do?” 

“I- I stopped it before it even started and left. He seemed kind of upset. I don't know.” Mickey sighed, thumping his head back on the headrest. 

“I'm coming over.” Mandy sighed. Svetlana and Nika dropped me home thanks to your no show.” 

“Yeah, whatever. I left my phone in the car okay, it wasn't my fault.” Mickey sighed. “I'm not even home yet so I'll see you there. I don't want to stay up late though. I'm really tired. So we can talk about it in the morning.”

“You stood me up so you don't get a say. We're definitely staying up all night and it's definitely all your fault.”


	7. Chapter 7

“Alright, fuck face, tell me everything.” 

Mickey took a big gulp of his water before wriggling around in his seat, making sure he was comfortable. He then went into great detail of the entire night. It was nearing three in the morning and he was most definitely going to regret this when he had to get up in four hours time but Mandy was getting him back for standing her up so Mickey just had to put up with it. When Mickey reached the part about Ian's eyes changing, he struggled to explain it properly. 

“What do you mean they changed?” Mandy narrowed her eyes at him, pulling her blanket tighter around herself. 

“I mean- literally that. For just a few seconds, five max, they were different. They- I don't know how to explain it. It was something I've never seen before. There was a word for it that I knew but it disappeared when I moved away. I don't know.” 

“But like- how?” 

“They changed- fuck! I don't know the word for it!” Mickey groaned, scrunching his eyes up as he tried to remember that word. It was right on the tip of his tongue but he could not remember it in the slightest. 

“Did they change- like get bigger? Or smaller?” 

“No! It was- the- the shade? The shade of it changed.” Mickey said, feeling like it made sense somehow. 

“Right… Okay. I think you need to sleep.” Mandy sighed. “I'm gonna crash here. I can't be fucked driving back home.” 

“Alright. I'll see you in the morning, maybe.” Mickey yawned, getting up from the couch. 

“Please don't wake me when you leave.” Mandy yawned as well, stretching out underneath the blanket. 

“Oh no, you kept me up this long you can fucking wake up when I do.” Mickey laughed, stumbling into his bedroom. “Goodnight!” 

“Fuck you!” 

* 

“What do you mean they changed?”

“I have no idea.” Ian shrugged, sitting back in his seat. 

“Alright then...” Carl nodded and took a swig of his beer. “So glad you called me over after midnight for this.”

“Yeah, sorry.” Ian smiled sheepishly, rubbing the back of his neck. “How's Sam?”

“Good. They're good.” Carl sighed. “They want to get a puppy and I'm trying to convince them to adopt but they want a purebred.” 

“Oh jesus. Just tell her- them, sorry, that adopting will save an animal's life.” Ian sighed, exhaustion starting to wash over him. 

“You don't think I've tried?” Carl snorted. “I'll take them to a shelter anyway. See if I can change their mind.”

“Thank you for coming over, Carl.” Ian yawned. “You can go home if you want? Or crash here?”

“I'll probably crash here. Too tired to drive.” Carl let out a groan, stretching out further on the couch. “Bring me a blanket and pillow will you?” 

“Yes, Carl, make yourself at home.” Ian rolled his eyes and stood up. “Get them yourself you lazy bastard.”

Ian stumbled into his bedroom and flicked on the light, sighing as he pulled his shirt and pants off, throwing them into the laundry basket. He went out and brushed his teeth, took his pills and climbed into bed, sighing in relief. He was so fucking tired. He was sure he was going to fall asleep within seconds. But his mind had other ideas. His brain wasn't done thinking about Mickey and why he pulled away. 

In the back of his head, he knew it was nothing personal and that he shouldn't be over thinking it, but at the forefront of his mind Ian was doubting everything about himself. Maybe his breath had stunk? Maybe Mickey wasn't actually gay and had just been too drunk to realise he was about to kiss a guy? There were so many thoughts running through Ian's head that he felt like he was going insane. 

Ian rolled over onto his stomach and tried too hard to fall asleep. He let out a groan and moved onto his back, staring up at the ceiling. What felt like hours later, he started to fall asleep, holding his pillow like he was hugging someone from behind. 

_“Is that your dick? Again? Seriously?”_

Ian let out a low laugh. “I can't exactly help it.”

Mickey turned around in Ian's arms and smirked at him. “You want me to help it?” He asked, running his hand down Ian's torso and grabbing his dick. 

Ian smiled and kissed him, pulling him even closer. His hands clutched as his back as Mickey rutted against Ian's crotch, pulling a small moan from his mouth. Mickey broke off the kiss and pushed Ian onto his back before straddling him, a mischievous grin plastered on his face. He leaned down and kissed Ian again, grinding his hips down. Ian sighed with happiness, smiling into the kiss. Mickey smiled as well, moving away slightly to look at Ian. 

“I love you.” 

“I love you too, Mick.” Ian sighed happily. He reached over to his bedside table and grabbed the bottle of lube, handing it to Mickey who popped it open and squirted some on his hands. He held eye contact with Ian as he reached around and spread it all over Ian's hard cock and himself. He kissed Ian yet again, holding the kiss as he lined Ian's dick up and slowly slid down onto it, the two of them groaning into each others mouths. 

Mickey started to move, grunting and gasping as the sensations started to wash over the two of them. Ian closed his eyes in pleasure, holding on to Mickey as tight as he could without hindering his movements. His speed picked up and so did the volume of their voices. The two men were shouting out together, covered in sweat and full of love and lust. 

Mickey looked down at Ian and smiled. “Ian, shut the fuck up.”

“Huh?” Ian panted, looking at him in confusion. 

“I said shut the fuck up!” Mickey repeated, his head turning into a cushion before he thumped Ian's forehead. 

“Ow! Fuck!” Ian gasped, shoving the cushion to the side and blinking away the sleep. 

“You've been moaning for the last three minutes. Shut the hell up.” Carl snapped from the doorway. 

“Sorry.” Ian muttered, waiting for him to leave before letting out a groan as he realized what had just happened. He was incredibly hard and he couldn't get thoughts of Mickey out of his head, his pretty smile and sparkly eyes. The worst part, however, was the fact that in the dream, they'd been in love. Mickey had loved Ian and he'd loved Mickey back. Now that he was awake, the empty feeling Ian was having over it not being real was causing him a fuck tonne of distress. 

Earlier on, he'd just been kind of drunk. He still hated Milkovich. But now, it was as if he had feelings for the guy. Ian felt mortified that he'd even dreamed about him like that. How the fuck was he supposed to face him tomorrow? Ian wouldn't be able to look at him without being reminded of the god damn dream. Just as he was in the dream, Ian was well and truly fucked. 

*

“I hate you so fucking much. I really do. I'm disowning you and finding a new sister.” 

“Uh huh.” Mandy rolled her eyes from beneath her blanket on the couch. “Can you wait until this afternoon so I don't have to get out of bed yet?” 

“Fuck you. Get up. You want a coffee? You gotta come with me.” Mickey said, yanking the blanket away from her as he walked past. 

Mandy let out a groan of frustration and curled up into a ball, scrunching her eyes shut tightly. “Why? Why do I do this to myself? Why do I inflict this kind of torture on myself?” 

“And your blameless, perfect brother that definitely didn't deserve it.” Mickey called as he poured himself another instant coffee. 

“No, you deserved it for standing me up. I am merely the victim of self sabotage.” Mandy said airily as she stood up and stretched. 

“Uh huh. Get dressed. We're leaving in five.” Mickey said, glancing at the time on his phone before rushing to his bedroom to get his shoes on. 

“What are you gonna say to Ian?” Mandy called. 

Mickey straightened up and groaned as the memory of the night before came crashing back with full force. All morning it had been in the back of his head but Mickey had refused to acknowledge it, had focused on getting ready and preparing for the day. Now that Mandy had broken the seal and actually said his name, he was fucked. It was all that was going to play on his mind all day. 

“Nothing?” Mickey shrugged, grabbing a tie from the floor. It probably needed ironing but Mickey really didn't have time. “Maybe things will be fine? They'll just go back to normal.” Mickey said hopefully. 

“That's likely.” Mandy snorted as Mickey returned to the living room. 

“You ready?” 

“Yep. Let's go. I'll go in my own car though. I'll just see you later.” 

“Fair enough. Thanks for last night. Your lack of advice and constant laughter at my situation was really helpful.” Mickey said sarcastically as they tiredly trudged down the stairs. 

“Anytime. What are sisters for?” 

*

“Get out of the way! This is a driveway! Not a god damn skate park!” Mickey yelled out the window. He glared at Cara's smirk as she rolled backwards into the staff parking lot. Before Mickey could get out and curse at her properly though, she had skated away around the side of the school building. Mickey grabbed his coffee and staggered out of his car, feeling like a zombie as he wandered slowly to the side door. 

“Mickey!” 

Mickey turned around to see Lucy jogging up to him with a smile on her face. “Hey, Luce. You look happy?”

“Because I am.” She beamed at him as he held the door open for her. 

“Oh yeah? Do tell.” 

“I sent Matthew the divorce papers today.” She grinned nervously. 

Mickey almost spat out his coffee. “You did what?! Why didn't you tell me you had even organized it all?! That's so amazing! I'm so proud of you!” 

“Thanks. I didn't tell you because I pretty much did it all last night. Found a good but cheap lawyer and she came over, we had a few drinks with Svetlana and Nika once we had finished to celebrate.” Lucy said happily, looking like she was about to start skipping and throwing flower petals everywhere. 

“That's so so awesome, Lucy.” Mickey smiled. “Damn, that is going to help me get through the day.” 

“Oh yeah? Why? What happened to you last night? Svetlana told me they had to drive Mandy home because you stood her up for some guy. Who was it? Is it serious?” Lucy nudged him, almost knocking his coffee to the floor. 

“No. I was just doing a favor for a- friend. We had dinner and time got ahead of me. Mandy came over and kept me up all night talking about- uh, stuff.” Mickey muttered, not feeling like getting into this shit with Lucy just yet. 

They were down the hallway from the staffroom when getting into this shit became inevitable as Ian walked out and towards Mickey and Lucy. Mickey tensed up at the sight of him, panic taking over as he tried to figure out what to do in the few seconds it took for Ian to reach them. 

“Milkovich.” Ian glared at him for a second before returning his gaze ahead. 

“What? No, Ian.” Mickey groaned, grabbing his arm to stop him. “What did you expect me to do? I mean, really?” 

“Just drop it.” Ian snapped, yanking his arm out of Mickey's grip before straightening his sleeve. 

“Seriously? You're not gonna talk about it?” Mickey asked incredulously, pushing aside his awareness of Lucy watching very closely. He spotted Cara walking with a couple of her friends nearby and Mickey knew he was screwed. 

“Mickey, it's fine. You don't need to worry about the joke or last night.” Ian said quietly, glancing around nervously. “Just forget anything ever happened. We'll start splitting the funding evenly and be done with this whole stupid thing.” 

“Wait- seriously?” Mickey reeled back in shock. 

“Yes.” Ian gave him a weak smile. “I'm done with you, Mickey. I don't want anything to do with you ever again. I'll let Jeff know the situation and we can pretend we don't know each other so that I don't have to deal with you.” Ian nodded as if this was all final, turned around and walked away, taking with him the best part about Mickey's job. 

“But- I don't want to.” Mickey found himself mumbling to himself. 

“What did you call it? Trouble in paradise?” Cara snorted from where she stood, leaning against the wall, eating peanuts from a bag as if Mickey and Ian had just put on a play for her. 

“Cara, I swear to fucking god.” Mickey growled thunderously, wanting to slap the stupid smile off of her face. 

“Jesus, Mickey, you can't swear at students.” Lucy said suddenly, grabbing his arm and tugging him into the staffroom. “You wanna tell me what the hell is going on?” 

“No.” Mickey said glumly, falling into one of the seats with a groan. He sat his coffee down and put his head in his hands as he tried to process what it all meant. What the hell was going on with him? 

“Will you tell me if I keep pestering you to?” Lucy asked, sitting down in front of him on the coffee table. 

“Probably not.” 

“If I leave it for the day and ask again later?” 

“Please.” Mickey smiled. “I'm gonna go and get my day ready. Check my emails and shit.” 

“Okay. Call me if you need me.” She sighed. 

Mickey nodded and stood up, walking as fast as possible out of the staffroom. He took off down the hallways, yelling at kids that didn't move out of the way, and burst into his classroom, locking the door behind him. He could go home sick if he really wanted. Lucy or Mandy could vouch for him if he needed them to. But no. He had used up a lot of his sick days already that year. He needed to save them for when he was actually sick. 

“Why? Why is this my life?” Mickey sighed to the empty room. He stared through his fingers for another minute before getting up and setting tests down on all the desks. There was a knock on the door and the handle rattled so Mickey set the tests down and went to open the door. 

“Mr Milkovich, I know you're in there.” Cara called through. 

“Class doesn't start for another twenty minutes. Come back then.” Mickey called back, not wanting to speak to anyone. 

“Let me in.” 

Mickey bumped his head on the door and let out a breath, unlocking the door and opening it to let Cara in. “What is it, Cara? I'm really not in the mood.”

“Just thought you'd want to see this.” Cara smiled, thrusting a sheet of paper at him.

“What is it?” Mickey sighed, trying to take in what he was looking at. It was a photocopy of a newspaper. 

“Bottom right corner.” Cara pointed to a small photo of Mickey and the mathletes at the competition on Saturday holding their trophy. 

“Oh, shit!” Mickey grinned at the sight. “Didn't think we'd be front page material.” 

“Neither. It's because their home team always wins. We're the first team to beat them in five years.” Cara said smugly, taking the sheet back and folding it up. 

“It''s a shame we couldn't go there last year then. Make it four years instead of five.” Mickey sighed, thinking yet again of Ian. 

“Probably. But… I think if things had gone differently a year ago, and we'd been able to share the funding and had gone last year… You and Mr Gallagher wouldn't be so close.” Cara said slowly, knowing very well she was walking on a very thin thread. 

“So close? Cara, in case you didn't notice this morning, he hates my guts.” Mickey scoffed. “I hate his too.” He added as an afterthought, not really feeling it though. 

“Sure you do.” Cara rolled her eyes. “Look, you want my advice?”

“No.”

“Just leave him alone. Give him time to get over the joke and his dad's death. He'll prank you sooner or later. If he doesn't then I'll give him a nudge.” Cara winked at Mickey and left the room. Her advice would have been fine if it weren't for the fact that Ian wasn't even mad about the joke anymore. It was the complete fuck up surrounding the almost kiss. 

Mickey's day dragged on incredibly slowly. Mandy dropped by to have lunch with her and Lucy, a mini celebration was thrown over the divorce papers and Mandy's successful first night as head chef. Once they left though, Mickey found himself alone in his classroom for a free period. He was going to mark the tests from earlier that morning to get ahead but not without a coffee. 

The halls were almost silent, the muffled sound of the classes in progress escaping through the doors. Outside the wind was howling violently, pelting rain down in an attempt to drown the world. Mickey was relieved to find the staffroom empty when he arrived. He went about making his coffee and decided to sit down on the only comfy armchair in the room. It was extremely peaceful to sit alone and listen to the rain outside while he was cosy and warm. The door opened and shattered his good mood when Ian walked in. He didn't even look at Mickey, he just went straight to the coffee machine and kept his back to Mickey. 

“Ian?” Mickey asked hopefully. Nothing. Mickey sighed and set his coffee down. “Ian, if you're not going to talk to me that's fine. Just at least listen to me...”

“Go on then.” Ian grunted when Mickey didn't start. 

“Last night was fun, okay? Probably the most fun we've ever had together without arguing or trying to annoy each other. But when- at the end of the night, I don't know what you expected me to do. I mean, we had literally just told each other we hate each other. Is that really how you would want our first-” Mickey bit off as he realized where he was going. That wasn't a road he wanted or needed to go down. 

“So, you do want it to happen then?” Ian turned around finally and raised an eyebrow at him. 

“What? No! No way. That was you. You were hitting on me. You tried to kiss me. I just- I wasn't- I didn't- didn't try any-”

“Don't fucking bullshit me, Mickey. I could fucking tell. We were both fucking flirting and you were leaning in just as much as I was!” Ian snapped, moving closer to the door, getting ready for a dramatic exit. 

“I was not! Jesus christ! You know, if I wanted to kill myself I'd climb your big assed fucking ego and jump to your IQ!” Mickey almost laughed. “How fucking up yourself are you to think that everyone wants to fucking get with you?!”

“Oh fuck off, Mickey. That's just fucking pathetic and you fucking know it. Who the fuck raised you?! Oh wait, I forgot. At least I don't have a deadbeat dad.” Ian scoffed. 

Mickey grabbed the nearest thing he could find, a cushion from the chair, and threw it at Ian as he yelled. “At least I don't have a dead dad!” 

“Ah! Fuck! You fucking idiot!” Ian gasped loudly, his coffee mug rolling on the ground. Most of Ian's torso was covered in boiling hot coffee. His abs were clearly defined in the wet shirt but this was hardly the time for Mickey to be admiring them.

Mickey froze, watching as Ian kept wincing in pain. It definitely wasn't as cold as the last time then. Mickey quickly came over to stand around and fret. “I- I didn't mean to.” He stammered. “Come on, you need to go to the nurse. Get some burn cream.”

“Fuck off! I don't need your help.” Ian spat, moving out of Mickey's reach. He wrenched open the staffroom door and stormed out, Mickey following close behind. 

“Ian, you need to take your shirt off.” Mickey said frantically, resisting the urge to start tugging at it from behind. 

“Fuck.” Ian hissed, already pulling it off as they walked. Mickey moved in front of him and walked backwards, wincing as he saw how burnt Ian was. A large amount of his torso was an angry red with a few blisters popping up already. 

“Fuck, Ian, I'm so sorry.” Mickey groaned, hesitantly reaching to touch him before pulling his hand back at the look on Ian's face. He turned around so that he was walking forwards again, glancing at Ian's face every so often.

“Milkovich, just go. You don't need to walk me to the fucking nurse. It's just a burn. Not a broken leg or something.” 

“Except I do because this is my fault and I feel terrible. I just keep fucking up.” Mickey moaned, running his hands through his hair. “It's all I ever do and I'm sorry that you keep ending up getting the brunt of it. I'm sorry about your dad and the joke I made and what I said before and for the coffee and I'm sorry for every bit of harm I have caused you in the last year.” 

Ian looked at Mickey curiously, raising an eyebrow at him. “You really mean that?”

“I do. I'm a shitty person, especially to you. Because of that I treat my sister shit sometimes and- I think you're right. We- there's something about you. I don't think we're good for each other.” Mickey admitted. “I think there is something weird about our relationship and if we'd kissed last night we-”

“Probably would have ended up hate fucking each other or some shit.” Ian nodded. “I know what you mean.”

“Would have been good though.” Mickey mused as they reached the nurse's clinic. 

“Damn straight. I would have ruined you.” Ian smirked, giving Mickey a look that made his toes curl with desire. 

“It's for the best. What you said this morning.” Mickey nodded, unsuccessfully fighting the blush creeping up his neck. 

“I'm glad we settled this.” Ian smiled, holding his hand out for Mickey to shake. Mickey was about to take it when Ian dropped it in shock as the nurse let out a scream, staring at Ian's chest in horror. 

“Calm the fuck down, you old hag. It's nothing.” Ian muttered as he strolled in. 

“You want me to stay?” Mickey asked, desperately wanting to get away and call Mandy. 

“Nah, I'm good. Thanks, Mick.” Ian smiled back. 

Mickey nodded and walked away, waiting until he was in another part of the building entirely before pulling his phone out to call Mandy. He stood around, impatiently waiting for her to answer. When she did, he didn't even give her a chance to speak. 

“You'll never believe what happened between me and Gallagher!” 

“Oh jesus, you're back to calling him Gallagher?” Mandy sighed. “That can't be good.”

“Yeah. No, I- force of habit. We made out. Up I mean.” Mickey laughed. 

“What do you mean?” Mandy asked suspiciously. 

“Well, I was trying to apologise to him for last night and we started arguing and I threw a cushion at him and he-”

“How is that making up?” Mandy interrupted rudely. 

Mickey kicked at the wall in frustration. “Fucking let me finish. He spilled boiling hot coffee all over himself so I walked him to the nurses clinic and we talked and apologized for everything and we agreed to split the funding evenly and be done with each other and to pretend we don't know each other! Isn't that great?” 

“Wow. I- did not expect that.” Mandy said sarcastically, her eye roll almost audible. 

“What do you mean?”

“Well, pretending you don't know each other is hardly making up, is it? You should have shaken hands and agreed to be friends. Or distant friends at least. Did you even shake hands to make it formal?”

“Yes. No. We were about to and then the nurse screamed at him.” Mickey sighed, leaning against the wall. “It's such a relief though. Knowing I don't have to worry about him anymore.” 

“Really?”

“Yes?” Mickey shot back in confusion. “Why wouldn't it be?”

“Oh, I don't know just- nothing. Something Svet said. It's nothing.” Mandy muttered.

“It's not nothing. What do you mean?”

“I gotta get back to work, Mickey. I'll call you later. Enjoy the rest of your day!” 

“No, wait!” Mickey yelled but she'd hung up already. Mickey stared at his phone in frustration. What the hell had she meant?


	8. Chapter 8

_-one month later-_

“Mommy was on the floor crying and- bleeding. I knew he'd hurt mommy so I tried to hurt him but I wasn't strong enough. I couldn't protect mommy. Daddy yelled at me and kicked me.”

Lucy's hand tightened on Mickey's, cutting off the circulation to his fingers. He squeezed back and removed his hand, wrapping his arm around her shoulders to hold her closer. It had been a long day. An even longer week in and out of court. Disgustingly, Matthew had somehow made it look like Lucy was a terrible mother that was hardly ever home and was drunk all the time. It was taking everything Mickey had to not storm over to his side of the courtroom and smack his fucking face in. 

Steve was up there now, a small nine year old boy having to testify against his own father. It was unfair that a child should have to do that. Ridiculously, there was a small part of Mickey, a very tiny part, that was jealous. He wished that his dad had been taken to court and that his mom was still there. He would have had a very different life indeed. 

“Mickey, come on.” Lucy whispered in his ear suddenly. While he'd been zoning out, the court case had gone on and now they were breaking for lunch. Mickey stood up with a groan, tugging on his tie uncomfortably. Steve, Gemma and Lucy's mom, Tracey, rejoined them and they all traipsed out, doing their best to ignore Matthew walking close behind. 

“What do you guys want for lunch? I was thinking… McDonald’s?” Lucy asked, picking Gemma up in her arms. 

“Yes please!” Steve said excitedly. 

“I'm so proud of you for going through with this, Lucy.” Tracey said. 

“So am I.” Mickey smiled at her, bumping their shoulders together. “You doing okay, buddy?” Mickey asked Steve, taking his hand as they walked. 

“Yep.” He beamed up at Mickey. 

“Great. Let's go get us some happy meals then.” 

*

“Guilty. I sentence you to ten years in prison.” 

“Fuck yes.” Mickey whispered.

“Ten years?” Lucy breathed out. Her lawyer started talking to her but one look at Lucy's face could show that she wasn't listening at all. 

“Nineteen. Steve will be nineteen years old when he gets out. Gemma will be sixteen. He's going to miss their entire lives.” Lucy sniffed, tears forming in her eyes. 

“Hey. Hey hey hey. Look at me, Luce. It's his own fault. He deserves it.” Mickey said seriously, taking her hands and squeezing them tightly. 

“But do they?” She asked, glancing at her children sitting with her mother behind them. 

“They're better off without them, sweetheart.” Tracey said, placing a hand on her shoulder. 

Mickey nodded in agreement. “Who needs him? You've got me and Mandy. Nika and Svetlana. Plenty more family members that won't put you through this shit.” 

“Language.” Gemma scolded. 

Everyone laughed quietly but they all fell silent as Matthew walked past in handcuffs, to policemen escorting him out of the courtroom. He looked at them all, tears streaming down his face, and Gemma started crying, Steve following closely behind. Lucy started crying as well, all three of them blubbering messes. 

The rest of the day seemed to pass by in a blur of going back to Nika and Svetlana's, sharing the news with everyone else. Lucy packed up all of her things and took them back to her own house. Gemma and Steve were delighted to be back home, going straight to their room to play with their things. The three of them stood around drinking coffee until Mickey had to get home and organist his lessons for the next day. 

“I'll take you out to dinner this weekend. To celebrate.” Mickey said, pulling his only good coat on. 

“You look like a burnt marshmallow in that.” Lucy smirked. “But yes, dinner sounds good.”

“You're staying the night?” Mickey looked to Tracey.

“Yes. Not leaving my babies alone tonight.” She smiled. 

“Awesome. I won't be seeing you at work tomorrow then?” Mickey asked. 

“I'll be back on Thursday.” Lucy sighed. “Try and get back to some form of normalcy.” 

“Alright. Love you guys.” Mickey said, pulling Lucy in for a hug. He kissed her on the cheek, hugged the kids and Tracey, and was off into the cold night. As he walked to his car, the wind swirled snow around him, making him shiver. There was a break in the clouds though and the moon was suddenly visible. The thin line of a new moon. Mickey couldn't help but smile. He had this weird feeling that things were about to change for the better. For everyone.

*

“What can I do for you, Miss Winters?” 

“Jeff, I'm just going to skip the niceties here. You and I both know what we are and what we do. I know your subjects and you probably don't know mine because I've only been doing this a couple of years so far.” 

Jeff stared at Cara in shock. It was the first time he'd actually seen her in a while. Every chance he'd had to visit his favourite universe, Cara had always been off doing something. Now he knew why. “You're a parajumper now?”

“Yes. But that's a story for another day.” Cara waved her hand, dismissing the shocking news all together. “Look, I'm sick of seeing Ian and Mickey not even talking to each other. You're hardly even trying with this universe so I'm going to give you my last bit of help. Lock them in the school tonight.”

“What- Cara that's- I'm scared, okay? Rosie makes me really nervous. After she showed me all my fuck ups, I'm scared to go doing anything.” Jeff sighed, putting his head in his hands. 

“Whatever. With this universe, I'm in charge. We're going to lock the two of them in the school. I know for a fact that they're behind on their work and they're gonna stay late. I'm 88% certain of that. Lock them in, they'll be forced to spend the evening together. They'll finally touch hopefully and you can get out of this universe.” Cara said firmly, looking at Jeff like she'd just put him in his place. She kind of had. 

“You are so much different in this universe.” Jeff shook his head slowly. “Amazing.” 

“I need to go. I'm probably confusing the fuck out of people.” Cara smirked. “I'll see you later, Jeff.” 

Jeff watched her go, trying to sort through the confusion of what the hell just happened. He stared at the shut door for a moment before he realized she was right. It's time to wrap up this universe.

*

“Mickey, I'm gonna have to cancel.”

“What? Serious? Work too busy?” Mickey sighed, already planning to use his spare time to catch up on some work. 

“No I… I'm not at work, I… I met someone.” Mandy said breathlessly. 

“You met someone? And you skipped out on work and me for them?” Mickey asked incredulously. “That's not like you. Who is he?”

“They- they're my soulmate, Mickey. We- they were complimenting my food and we shook hands and- fuck, Mickey, the world is so fucking beautiful.” 

“What? I'm confused… You met your soulmate? They exist? You can see color?” Mickey asked in a rush, a weird sense of dread falling over him. 

“Yes! We- it's so hard to explain. We touched and it was like- like a mild orgasm all over my entire body and my head hurt from the sudden knowledge of all these colours and- Mickey, if you could see it.” Mandy sighed. 

“Well- what's his name?! Does this mean he's your girlfriend? I thought you were aro and ace?” Mickey asked, trying not to sound accusing. He'd never really talked to Mandy about it and if he was being honest, he just hadn't put in the effort to research it or understand it. 

“I still am? I just don't find sex appealing and I feel- this is neither here nor there. We- we're spending the evening together to get to know each other. See as much as we can. I'm so… In awe of everything. Mickey, you should see flowers. They're just gorgeous. My food as well! It looks amazing!”

“I'm so happy for you, Mandy.” Mickey smiled. “So, what's her name?” 

“Oh right. It's Sam. They're non-binary so they use neutral pronouns.” Mandy said happily. They've got a boyfriend already. Mickey, you've got to meet them. They're so amazing. We've been together for like an hour and I just- I'm so fucking happy!”

“That's so awesome, Mands.” Mickey grinned into the phone, glancing outside as he noticed the snow starting to fall. “Look, if our night is cancelled, I'm gonna stay at work and get some stuff done. I'll head out at about half past seven. We can meet for a drink or something.”

“That sounds awesome. Please try, Mickey. Promise me you will.” Mandy said, someone talking in then background. 

“Okay, I promise, I will. I'm happy for you, Mands, but I have so much work to do. I need to go okay? I'll call you later. Have fun.” Mickey ended the call and only just refrained from throwing his phone on the floor. 

It was Thursday night and it was almost half past six already. He was tired, hungry, and to make matters worse, Mandy's news had make him feel incredibly lonely suddenly. Lucy had sat in his classroom with him for an hour before giving up and going home to her kids. He was supposed to celebrate with her at some point as well. He had to organist a bus for the trip to Iowa City next week but before he could do anything at all, he desperately needed to get his lessons planned and his work marked. He had somehow managed to get so far behind that he actually had kids asking him for their work back. 

“Fuck.” Mickey dropped his pen and put his head in his hands, struggling to focus. He had been through so many quizzes and work books that everything was starting to blur together. He was certain he had mixed up different classes and was going to be paying for it in the morning. He was finding it extremely hard not to pack up and leave. He couldn't stop thinking about the pizza he was going to order for dinner.

Another hour had passed when he let out a groan and literally threw his pen across the room. He picked up all the remaining papers and stuffed them into his bag. He shut down his computer and pulled his coat on, desperate to get out of there. He flicked the light off and locked the door behind him, pulling his phone out of his pocket. He called Lucy and waited patiently for her to answer, making his way to the staff exit. 

When Lucy didn't answer, he sent her a text informing her that he could hang out after all and that he was on his way. Within seconds she had replied. 

_Lucy  
Received 8:14pm  
I can't anymore. Sorry hun. _

_Sent 8:15pm  
why the fuck not? _

_Lucy  
Received 8:18pm  
busy_

_Sent 8:18pm  
doing what???_

Lucy became silent, annoying Mickey to no end. His night was only getting worse. When he reached the door to the staff parking lot, he found it locked. The door needed a key to be unlocked from either side so Mickey was forced to traipse across the school to the main entrance. Maybe the cleaners were still here. Mickey grew increasingly frustrated as he found that door after door was locked with no way out. 

It was a quarter to nine and he was so close to throwing a chair through a window. He was tired and starving and sick of seeing this stupid school. He was about to give up and call someone when he remembered the gym had doors to outside. He set off across the school yet again, managing to enjoy the silent empty halls. It was nice to walk down them with ease, no annoying teenagers getting in his way. 

Mickey rounded a corner and slowed to a stop when he saw a classroom light on up ahead. None of the other lights were on which meant someone was in there. He panicked for a second, trying to figure out what to do, when he realized the gym was up ahead which meant that the light was in Gallagher's classroom. 

“Just my fucking luck.” Mickey sighed. He'd managed to stay away from Gallagher since the day he'd burnt him. They'd spoken once since that day. Mickey had asked how his chest was the next day to ease his conscience. Ian had told him he'd be fine and that had been it. Since then, Mickey had only seen him a couple of times in the hallways and the staffroom. They had somehow gone back to what it had been like before that fateful day when Mickey asked for funding. 

“Shit.” Mickey muttered. He had no choice. He had to go talk to him. He needed help finding a way out of this shit hole. If that meant breaking their no talking record then so be it. Mickey was far too hungry for that kind of pettiness. He forced himself to start walking, his entire face heating up at how stupid this situation was. 

He knocked on the door, feeling himself blush furiously. He pushed it open and smiled apologetically at Ian who was looking at him in confusion. “Um, all the doors are locked. I can't get out… Sorry.” 

“Shit, really?” Ian asked, dropping his pen and leaning back in his seat. 

“Yep.” I've tried almost everything. But the gym has a door to outside, right?” Mickey asked hopefully. 

“Yeah, but it's an enclosed area. I have a key for that but that can't get us off school property.” Ian sighed, grabbing his phone and checking the time. “Give me five minutes and I'll come and help.”

“Sweet. I'll just- wait outside.” Mickey muttered, stepping back out the door. 

“No, you can sit inside and wait, you dick.” Ian laughed. 

Mickey stepped back in, grateful to be in the much warmer classroom than the freezing cold hall. He sat down at the back, feeling weird to be in a student's seat. He glanced over at Ian who was staring at his work in confusion, his pen tapping the desk rhythmically. Mickey found he couldn't look away from the hard lines of his face, the strong arms covered in freckles. Within seconds, all Mickey could think of was some lame porn video of a teacher and a student. Mickey forced himself to look away as his cheeks went red yet again. 

“How've you been?” Ian asked, breaking the silence. 

“Oh, uh, I've been okay. Good, actually.” Mickey smiled, thinking of Lucy's court case and Mandy finding Sam. “You?”

“Pretty good I guess. Keeping busy.” Ian muttered, his brow wrinkling again as he continued working. “This fucking student, do you know David? David Linfield?”

“Unfortunately.” Mickey snorted. He was a complete idiot. In every sense of the word. He had no brains and he was an asshole to damn near everyone he met. 

Ian smirked. “So, the work I'm looking at, I don't even understand how he thought this would be right. The question says to list all the parts of the female reproductive system… He didn't get anything except for vagina… I've been nailing these kids with this shit. He should fucking know this...” Ian shook his head in disbelief. “He's drawn a fucking dick!”

“What?” Mickey asked incredulously, jumping up to have a look. 

Ian pointed it out for Mickey, glancing up at him. “Right there. A tiny little one. He thought I wouldn't notice. Jesus christ.” Ian snapped the book shut. “I give up. Let's get out of here.”

“You know a way out?” Mickey asked hopefully. 

“Nope.” Ian snorted. “Did you try the library?”

“No...” Mickey said slowly, waiting as Ian pulled his coat on. He grabbed his things and they left the room, their footsteps echoing in the silent corridors. Ian led them to the library, neither of them talking. When they reached the library, the found the doors to get in locked. They couldn't even check. 

“I think we're fucking locked in.” Ian groaned. “What the fuck? Surely the cleaners come in? Who the hell locks all the doors in the school without checking that the teachers and students aren't gone?” 

“I don't know… Fucking assholes.” Mickey grumbled, crossing his arms as he tried to accept that he was stuck there for the night. 

“Maybe Jeff has a set of keys.” Ian suggested. “Come on. I have plans. I wanna get out of here.” 

They set off, yet again, another silence falling over them. Mickey kept glancing at Ian as they walked, struggling to keep up with his long strides. He looked angry. Probably angry that he had to spend the night with Mickey. 

“How's Lucy? I heard about the divorce.” Ian said slowly. 

“You read the newspaper, right?” 

“Yeah. Ten years is pretty damn lucky though.” Ian commented.

“Is it though? Her son is going to be nineteen years old when he gets out. Gemma will be sixteen. She's worried what it's going to do to them, growing up without a dad. I'm worried Luce is going to do something stupid like take them to visit the asshole every week. I don't know...” Mickey said without even thinking. He had been thinking about it since the court case three days ago, what kind of effect this would have on Lucy. She'd become increasingly reclusive in just three days. Mickey had finally convinced her to let him come over for dinner tonight before he went bowling with Mandy. Now he was fucking stuck in the school. 

“I don't know Lucy that well.” Ian said, the two of them coming to a stop outside of Jeff's office. “But from what I do know, I can tell that she is incredibly strong. She's gonna be okay, Mickey.” Ian smiled sympathetically. 

“Thanks.” Mickey smiled back, opening the door and flicking the light on. 

“Where would he keep keys?” Ian asked, more to himself. 

The two men both started rifling through drawers and cupboards. Mickey scanned the empty spaces on the big bookshelf covering a wall but neither of them found any keys. Ian did, however, find a bottle of scotch. 

“Jesus. Boss has some problems.” Ian snorted, holding the bottle up triumphantly. 

“Well, put it back. We're here for keys.” Mickey sighed, turning around to see if anything jumped out at him. 

“What? No way, I'm having some. This is expensive shit, man. You don't want any?” Ian asked, pulling out Jeff's glass. 

“No.” Mickey sighed, sitting down with a grunt. “Can't believe we're stuck here.” 

“Did you try calling anyone?” Ian asked, pouring a very generous amount.

“Oh my god, no. How the fuck did I not think to do that?” Mickey threw his hands up in the air. He was so fucking stupid. He pulled his phone out as Ian settled into Jeff's chair, grinning at the luxury of it all. Mickey had no answer from fucking anyone. Not from Mandy, Lucy or Jeff. No one was answering their fucking phones. 

“Should we call the cops?” Ian asked when Mickey thumped his phone down with a scowl. 

“That's just embarrassing. 'Uh hi, we got locked in school. Can you come get us?' Fuck that.” Mickey snorted. “We can brave it out for one night… Gimme some of that.”

“Absolutely.” Ian grinned, pulling another glass out of the cupboard and pouring some for Mickey. “Cheers.”

Mickey snorted. “Cheers.”

*

Jeff had a tall grandfather clock in his office, ticking away the hours in a soothing way. There was a storm going crazy outside, whipping people's umbrellas and scarves everywhere, freezing the ends of their noses and soaking their coats. But Ian and Mickey were happily drinking in silence, playing games on their phones and occasionally reading books from Jeff's selection. 

The clock suddenly started chiming to say it was midnight and Mickey's stomach was grumbling like crazy. He sat his book down and let out a long groan, throwing his head back like a wolf. “I'm so fucking hungry!” 

“I know. Same.” Ian moaned, clutching at his stomach helplessly. “We should go to the cafeteria and see if they have anything there!” 

“Seriously, why the fuck didn't we think of that before?” Mickey shook his head, noticing for the first time just how drunk he was. 

Ian stood up and swayed dangerously, grabbing the desk to steady himself. “Drinking four glasses of whiskey on an empty stomach was not a good idea.” 

“Oh shit.” Mickey slurred as he stood up, the room spinning around him slightly. 

“This is going to be a fun walk.” Ian laughed, stumbling out of the office and down the hall. 

“Wait up, dick.” Mickey called after him, struggling to get his bearings. The cafeteria was only around the corner but Ian had gone the wrong way. “Oi, Gallagher! It's this way!” 

Ian spun around and fell into the wall, laughing his head off. “Oops.” 

“Oh jesus. You're one of those annoyingly stupid and giggly drunks, aren't you?” Mickey grinned, watching as Ian wandered down the hallway. 

“Probably. But I bet you're one of those really annoyingly negative and boring drunks.” Ian quipped, passing him and disappearing around the corner. 

“Fucking asshole.” Mickey sighed, following him into the cafeteria. 

The large room was eery without any lights. It would have been pitch black if it wasn't for the vending machines lighting the room up. Ian was standing next to one filled with chocolate bars and other snacks, tapping the buttons mindlessly. 

“Ian?”

“You got a quarter?” Ian asked miserably. 

“No. I was thinking we could check the kitchen. They might have some of the mac 'n' cheese left over from lunch today.” Mickey said happily, pushing the door open and walking through the small kitchen. He found the big fridge and pulled it open, scanning the fridge for something edible. He found the macaroni cheese and let out a happy yell. 

“You find something?” Ian asked, walking in and looking around with interest. “Never been in here before.” 

“Really?” Mickey asked pulling the tray out. “I come in here a few times a month. Get my lunch here instead.” 

“Ew.” Ian snorted, leaning through the serving area and grabbing two forks from the container. 

“Come on. Let's be cliche fuckheads.” Mickey said, climbing up onto a bench and sitting with his legs crossed. Ian joined him and they started eating, not even caring that it was cold and kind of gross. They kept catching each others eyes and grinning at each other, talking about their least favourite students and which teacher was the most annoying, excluding themselves of course. 

“I left my phone in Jeff's office.” Ian sighed once they had finished. “We should go back. It's warmer in there anyway.” 

“And the alcohol is in there.” Mickey pointed out, sliding off the counter with a thud. 

Ian followed him closely behind, talking about his brother ditching him all the time for his new partner. He wouldn't stop complaining about the countless times he'd been stood up. When Mickey asked for examples though, Ian could only list two instances, struggling to even come up with a third. They returned to their seats and Ian started to pour another drink. 

“Uh, I think you've had enough, Ian.” Mickey said, snatching the bottle out of his hands. 

“What? No!” Ian gasped dramatically, reaching for the bottle. 

“No.” Mickey said firmly, keeping the bottle out of his reach. “Are you sure you should be drinking this much? I- I heard about your bipolar disorder… Are you on meds?” 

“How do you know about that?” Ian asked quietly, looking down at his lap. 

“Um… a while ago I made a joke about mental illness in front of your brother and he went nuts… And when I was at your apartment and I went to the bathroom I saw the- the lithium and stuff...” Mickey said, hanging his head in shame. 

“You went through my things?” Ian asked incredulously. “Why would you do that? What the fuck is wrong with you?” 

“Oh, come on. You're telling me you've never gone through someone's bathroom cabinet before?” Mickey rolled his eyes. 

“No! Because I respect people's privacy!” Ian snapped. “Now give me the god damn drink back. I know my fucking meds and I know my fucking limits.” 

“No, Ian, you've had enough regardless. We both have. We need to start sobering up and go to sleep.” Mickey shook his head. 

“Choke on my dick, Milkovich and give me the bottle.” Ian snapped, standing up and reaching for it. 

“No.” Mickey jumped up and held it even further away from him. “I'll pour it out!”

“Mickey fucking Milkovich! Give me that fucking bottle before I bash your stupid head in!” 

“Oh my god, I was not born with enough middle fingers to let you know how I feel about you.” Mickey shouted out, taking a step back as Ian moved around to his side of the desk. 

“Look, Mickey, if you're gonna be a smart ass, first you have to be smart. Otherwise you're just an ass.” Ian snarled, taking a step closer. 

Mickey took another step away and shook his head. “You can't have it.” Ian took another step and Mickey panicked. He dropped the bottle and let it smash on the ground, the remaining liquor splashing all over the floor. 

“What the fuck, Milkovich?!” Ian shouted. He pulled his fist back and before Mickey could even duck, Ian's fist had connected with his face. Mickey stumbled backwards into the bookcase as his head exploded in pain. He swung out blindly as he tried to regain his normal vision, his fist meeting Ian's jaw. 

“What is going on?! What the fuck?!” Ian yelled, looking around wildly. 

Mickey could see the blood spilling from Ian's mouth, shining a bright red in the light. He blinked several times, trying to figure out what had happened. The office, once a boring grey scale, was now full of colours. His head was killing him and his body felt the best it had felt in months. 

Mickey looked at Ian in equal confusion. “WHAT THE FUCK DID YOU DO?!”


	9. Chapter 9

The desk was a beautiful brown. The small pot plant was a gorgeous green. The books were all kinds of colours; golden, brown, green, red, yellow, orange. His eyes though, his eyes were the prettiest and sparkliest blue. Ian had only seen them, really seen them, for a minute and he knew he would never get sick of them. 

“What the fuck did you do?! What the fuck is this?! I'm gonna be sick. Oh my god.” 

Ian looked from his fist to Mickey's face and back again. How was this possible? He couldn't comprehend it. Not even in the slightest. Mickey Milkovich, the man he'd hated for damn near two years now, was his soulmate? Ian started shaking his head and backing away from Mickey. He swiped his tongue out to wipe away the blood from his split lip and winced in pain. 

“I don't understand. Does this mean you're my- my soulmate?” Mickey asked incredulously, looking Ian up and down like he was seeing him for the first time. In a way, he was. 

Ian glanced behind him and fell down into the nearest seat, trying to process what the hell had just happened. “I don't believe it… I just- all this fucking time?!”

“I mean, people made jokes about it and shit but I never ever thought to take them seriously...” Mickey said slowly, leaning against the bookshelf. He had blood dripping down the side of his face from where Ian had hit him and Ian immediately felt bad. 

“I'm sorry for hitting you so hard.” Ian said quietly, standing up again to peer out into the reception area. It was too dark to really see anything. 

“Same here.” Mickey laughed halfheartedly. “Your lip okay?”

“Yeah, just bleeding is all.” Ian shrugged, turning around to look at Mickey. “How's your head?” 

“Sore.” Mickey smiled, a radiant and beautiful smile. 

Ian took a step closer and gently pushed Mickey's hair back, trying to locate the source of the blood. There was a small cut just in his hair line that wasn't bleeding too much anymore. “You're fine.” Ian smiled moving away slightly and leaning against the bookcase next to him. 

“Thanks, Nurse Jackie.” Mickey smirked. 

“Oh, fuck you.” Ian smiled, elbowing him in the arm. 

Mickey looked at him and smiled even wider, grabbing him by the back of his neck and then suddenly his lips were on Ian's and it was everything Ian had ever dreamed of and wanted without even knowing it. Mickey pushed him up against the bookshelf, kissing him even harder as Ian slid his arms around Mickey's waist. 

“Mmph- you know what we should do?” Mickey asked, pulling back and looking at Ian with a mischievous look on his face. 

“What?” Ian raised an eyebrow. 

“Go to one of the art classrooms and fucking paint something. Find all the different colours!” Mickey said excitedly. 

“Let's fucking do it!” Ian grinned. He grabbed Mickey's hand and they took off through the halls, slightly sobered up but still pretty drunk. They reached one of the art classrooms and stumbled inside, suggesting things to paint. Ian entered the storeroom and turned the light on, looking around in wonder. 

“Mickey, get in here. There's so many colours.” Ian called, turning slowly in a circle to take it all in. 

Mickey stepped inside and gasped, a big smile on his face. “This is incredible.” 

“Look at this one.” Ian said, picking up a pot with a lid the color of turquoise and was shocked to see that it was powder and not liquid. He stuck his finger in it and pulled it out, smiling at the light dusting covering his finger. 

“Turquoise.” Mickey said, staring at his finger closely. 

Ian nodded and wiped it on Mickey's face. “I don't understand how we know all the names. My sister told me about it but I could never understand it. She said it's just something you have to experience to understand.” 

“Understandable.”Mickey grinned. “So fucking weird. My sister found her soulmate tonight as well.” Mickey said, smacking his head as he remembered Mandy. He was supposed to meet her for a drink at some point to meet Sam. She must have gotten caught up with them. 

“What a coincidence.” Ian said, grabbing a whole bunch of paints before sitting on the floor of the storeroom. “I still can't believe it's you. All this fucking time… I should have punched you sooner.” 

“Ha ha.” Mickey snorted, sitting down in front of him. “Imagine though, if one of us had actually hit the other during our first big fight. Nothing would be the same.”

“I know… I don't understand how we managed to go that far without actually touching each other. Like… It just doesn't seem realistic.” Ian shook his head, opening up different pots of powder paint. With each new color, he put a swipe somewhere on Mickey's face. 

“I never thought I would find my soulmate...” Mickey said quietly, closing his eyes as Ian continued to swipe colours on his face. “I somehow convinced myself that they don't exist. That this was all bullshit. Even though I had a friend who's cousin found theirs or something. I just got so scared that- with the way that I grew up… The kind of person I am… Was. I didn't deserve someone like that. So I found a way to separate myself from it all...” 

Ian had stopped swiping colours on his face. Was too saddened by Mickey's words. He leaned forward and kissed Mickey. “You don't need to worry now. You have me.” Ian smiled. “I uh… When my sister met Mike and they found out and everything, I got so jealous. So insanely jealous of the two of them. They moved in with each other a week after they'd met, getting engaged another week later...” 

Ian swallowed around the dryness in his throat and continued putting random colours on Mickey's face. “I started going on dates with every guy that smiled at me. I even went on dates with girls a few times. Just in case. That was stupid.” Ian snorted. “But as more time went on, the more I panicked. I used to just go on the dates with them, hoping for something to happen… Then I started sleeping with them more and more often. My meds got changed and I couldn't suddenly and I felt like I was never going to find someone and I was suic- I was in a bad place for a while...” Ian changed his sentence quickly, not wanting this happy evening to take such a dark turn. “But I got better.” 

Mickey nodded and kissed him back, holding Ian close by his coat. “And now we've found each other.” 

“Yes, we have.” Ian smiled. 

“I also think it's your turn to have your face painted.” Mickey said, picking up a pot of bright blue powder. He stuck his finger in and swiped it down Ian's nose, laughing slightly. Before Ian could do anything about it, Mickey had poured a heap of the powder into his hand and had thrown it all over Ian's good fucking coat. 

“You fucker!” Ian yelped, dusting it off as best as he could. 

Within seconds they were throwing paint powder all over each other, filling the air with a dozen different colours. It was difficult to breathe and hard to see but neither of them cared. They had finally done what they'd been told to do for the past year; put aside their differences and stop fighting. Ian couldn't believe how easy it was. Easier than breathing. He couldn't figure out how they'd gone so long without touching. Now that they had, it was as if a veil had been lifted and Ian had really just been falling in love with Mickey all this time. 

“Stop! I can't breathe!” Mickey coughed, stumbling out the doorway into clean air. 

Ian followed him out and wiped at his eyes carefully, blinking through the paint. “I hope this stuff is non-toxic. I'm a hundred percent certain I've just ingested it in four different ways.” 

Mickey laughed and nodded, rubbing his throat and smiled at Ian. “I think we'll be fine.”

“I'll let you know if I end up in hospital.” Ian snorted, sitting down at the teachers desk. “Who's classroom are we in?” 

“Fucked if I know.” Mickey shrugged, looking around for a sign. The walls were covered in weirdly colored paintings, none of them really matching together. Art was only really for dedicated seniors. Nobody else had any interest in painting things when they couldn't see the real colours. 

“Where are we going to sleep? There's no blankets or anything anywhere, is there?” Ian asked, slowly starting to get cold. “Could possibly be something in the drama de-”

“You think there's any cameras in here?” Mickey interrupted, completely ignoring Ian's question. 

“Pfft. No, this school cannot afford cameras.” Ian shook his head in amusement. “Why?” 

In answer, Mickey walked over to him and straddled him, holding his neck and kissing him hard. Ian responded with equal enthusiasm, his hands sliding around Mickey's waist and up his back, holding him in place. Ian knew where this was going, he had been wanting it probably since he first saw Mickey glare at him. Mickey rolled his hips forward and smiled into the kiss when Ian moaned from the pressure. He hadn't realized how hard he was until Mickey had brought it to his attention. 

Mickey ended the kiss and slid off of him, kneeling on the ground and looking up at Ian with a small smile. He undid Ian's pants, holding eye contact with that piercing blue gaze, and pulled his pants and underwear down. Ian didn't even have time to prepare before Mickey had grabbed his dick.

“Shit, Mickey, oh my god.” Ian moaned and slid his fingers through Mickey's hair, gripping tight as Mickey's hot wet mouth went down on him. Jesus, he felt so good. Mickey grabbed Ian's hips to steady himself and started sucking, his tongue swiping at the head, sucking in his cheeks. Ian was cursing like crazy, eyes clenched shut with his hands fisting Mickey's hair. They were both soaked with sweat, suddenly so hot in the cold room. Ian hadn't even noticed that Mickey's pants were halfway down his thighs with his hard cock out. He didn't even seem to care, too consumed with sucking Ian off. 

“Fuck, when I said choke on my dick, I didn't mean literally.” Ian managed to joke, looking down at the sight in amazement. 

Mickey hummed around Ian's dick, sending vibrations everywhere, right to Ian's soul. Mickey let go of Ian's hips and started jerking himself off, gripping the base of Ian's dick with his free hand. The sounds coming out of Mickey's mouth should have been obscene and disgusting but they were just driving Ian closer and closer to the edge. 

“Jesus, Mick- I'm gonna come.” Ian gasped, spurting his load as he spoke. Mickey sucked him through it, letting go and groaning as he came as well. 

“Shit.” Mickey muttered, come dripping down his face. 

“The- my come is mixing with the paint slightly.” Ian said with stifled laughter. 

Mickey swiped a finger through it and looked at it, bursting into loud cackles over it all. “Oh my good god. That's fucking. You have colourful come.” 

“No I don't, you just had a colourful face!” Ian whined, standing up and pulling his pants up. 

Mickey followed suit, still laughing like the asshole he was. “Are there showers in the gym?” 

“Yes, of course.” Ian nodded. “Good idea.” 

“I feel disgusting. Let's go.” 

*

Mickey's alarm woke him up the next morning, uncomfortable, freezing cold and unsure of where he was or what the hell was happening. It hit him a moment later as he grabbed at his phone from next to him, struggling to turn the alarm off before he woke Ian up. He was hugging Mickey tightly from behind, the two of them in the exact same position they'd fallen asleep in. They were in the storeroom of the drama department, on top of a pile of cushions with one thin blanket over them. It had been freezing but neither of them had noticed, too wrapped up each other and the light that had been shed on the world. 

Mickey couldn't get over it. All it took was one touch and suddenly Mickey's entire world had been flipped upside down and shaken violently. He'd been so convinced that he didn't have a soulmate, that he was going to be alone for the rest of his life. He might have had a few relationships, but nothing that would have lasted. It was exhilarating. 

“You awake?” Ian croaked, pulling Mickey closer to him. 

“Yep. Sorry about my alarm.” Mickey yawned, turning around in Ian's arms to look at him. 

“No, it's fine. I usually get up earlier than this.” Ian smiled. He started to get up but Mickey grabbed at him, pulling him back down to the cushions. 

“Where do you think you're going?” Mickey asked, kissing him quickly. 

“To go take my pills. I have spares in my classroom.” Ian smiled. “I'll be back in a minute, okay?” 

“Okay, yeah, go.” Mickey nodded, letting him go reluctantly. 

He watched as Ian disappeared through the door, his footsteps growing quieter down the corridor. Mickey picked his phone up and finally took notice of his notifications. He had a few messages from Lucy, a few messages from Svetlana, a few messages from Nika and thirty four from Mandy. There were missed calls from her as well. Forty eight to be exact. He called Mandy with anxiety, scared of what the fuck had happened. 

“MICKEY! Are you okay?! Where the fuck are you?! What the hell happened to you?!” 

“What? I'm fine? What the hell is going on?” Mickey asked incredulously, shocked at her urgency. 

“Mickey, no one knew where the fuck you were. You weren't answering your phone and you didn't call me back or Lucy and you weren't at home. I was counting down the fucking hours before I could call the police and get them to start looking for you!” 

“Jesus. Shit, Mandy, I'm so sorry. I forgot to take my phone off of silent once I finished work. I got locked in the school overnight.” Mickey gushed, guilt washing over him like the ocean. 

“Fucking christ, Mickey. Why didn't you try calling someone? Or smash a fucking window? How the hell did you not use your phone?” Mandy demanded, her anger making Mickey feel even worse. 

“Because I was with Ian. He got locked in with me.” Mickey admitted, nervous over telling Mandy. 

“Shit. What happened? Are you okay?” Mandy asked, softening her tone. 

“Yeah… Mandy, I'm the biggest fucking idiot on this planet.” Mickey sighed, smiling as he thought about last night. 

“What? What did you do?” Mandy asked slowly.

“He hit me and- it happened. Mandy, everyone was fucking right. You were right. The world is so god damn beautiful in color.” 

“What do- holy shit, is he your soulmate?!”

“Yep.”

“Fucking hell. What a coincidence. Mickey that's so amazing. But fucking hell, don't you ever fucking scare me like that again! I'm going to call the others. I'll talk to you later, dickhead.” 

Mickey laughed as Mandy hung up on him, calling even more names as she went. He dropped his phone next to him and stretched out, yawning loudly when Ian walked back in. He dropped back down next to Mickey, sliding his arm underneath Mickey's head to pull him close. 

Mickey moved his head onto Ian's chest and sighed. “We're gonna need to get up soon. Before other teachers start arriving.”

“Oh, don't say that.” Ian whined. “What's the time?” 

“Half past six.” 

“Give me ten more minutes. We'll go get a coffee and wait in your classroom. As soon as we know people are here, we'll slip out, go home and get changed and come back as if nothing happened.” Ian mumbled, kissing the top of Mickey's head. 

“Sounds good to me.” Mickey sighed, wriggling closer to Ian, their legs tangled together. 

Those ten minutes passed by all too fast, the two of them groaning and muttering as they got up and walked out into the hall with stiff limbs. It was freezing cold and Mickey did not want to do anything at all. They walked slowly, Mickey's teeth chattering in the quiet. Not even their coats were enough to warm them up. The heating hadn't been turned on yet. Ian's hand slipped into Mickey's, the warmth making him feel better straight away. 

They reached the staffroom and both sighed in relief. The staffroom was deliciously warm, soothing their frozen bones within seconds. Ian went straight to the coffee machine and got it going while Mickey went to the window to look outside. The snow had come down heavily, covering everything with a thick white blanket. The window overlooked part of the staff car park and the children's playground next door. 

“Jeff's here.” Mickey said, spotting him getting out of his car. 

“Shit.” Ian muttered. “Here.”

Mickey accepted the coffee with a thanks and sat down, holding the cup close to him as the heat seeped through. He opened his mouth to ask about what they were telling people when Ian interrupted him. 

“I think I'm in love with you.” He said, staring into space while he blew on his coffee. 

“Really?” Mickey asked, smiling at him. 

Ian looked up at him and nodded, returning his smile. “I think I have been since our first fight.” 

“Well, if I'm being honest, I think I am too. Have been since you waltzed into my classroom and insulted me.” Mickey admitted, his cheeks heating up. 

“Cool.” 

“Cool.”


	10. Chapter 10

-one year later-

“Mickey! I swear to god, if you don't get out of the fucking kitchen I'm going to stab you!” 

“Whoa, jesus. I was just getting another beer. Calm your fucking tits, woman.” Mickey snapped. 

Mandy spun around, giant knife in hand, and glared at him. “What have I told you about calling me woman?” 

“Sorry, m'lady.” Mickey bowed, lifting an imaginary hat off of his head, and backed out of the kitchen, three beers in hand. 

“I'll get the next round. Wouldn't want Mickey to lose a limb.” Ian sighed as Mickey sat down next to him, handing him a beer and the third one to Carl. Mickey snuggled in closer to him, wriggling around to get comfortable. 

“What time is Sam getting here?” Mickey asked, peering around Ian's body at Carl. 

“Uh, not a clue. I think they said sometime around six? I'll check my phone.” Carl said, lifting his hips up to pull his phone out of his back pocket. “Yeah, about six.” 

“What about Lucy and the kids? What time will they get back?” Ian asked, planting a kiss on Mickey's head. 

“Anytime now.” Mickey smiled, taking a swig of his beer. He was so desperate to see them. Lucy had taken the kids to Indiana where her grandparents were for the three weeks over Christmas. Now that it was new years eve, they were coming to Mickey and Ian's for a big family dinner with everyone before they set off a few fireworks for Gemma and Steve. The front door opened and suddenly the house was filled with so much more noise. Mickey set his beer down and jumped up, rushing out into the entryway and scooping Gemma up, much to her delight. 

“Hello, my little munchkin!” He yelled, hugging her tightly. 

“Mickey!” Steve yelled excitedly.

“You guys have fun at grandmas?! I missed you so much!” Mickey gushed, putting Gemma down before hugging Lucy tightly, breathing in the familiar smell of her perfume. He let go and grinned at her, dusting snow off of her shoulders. 

“Happy holidays.” She huffed, dropping her bags in a huff. “Missed you.” She smiled, ruffling Mickey's hair. 

“Missed you too.” Mickey replied, grabbing her food bags for her and taking them into the kitchen. 

“Mickey, what did I say?” Mandy sighed. 

“Hey, I'm delivering food.” Mickey scoffed, setting the bags down on the counter.”

“Where's your blitzer?” Mandy asked, opening cupboards and drawers. 

“Uh, he's been and gone with Santa and Rudolph.” Mickey joked, grinning at her look of pure death. 

“You're not funny.” She snapped. 

“Yes I am. We don't have on. We use a blender or our hands and teeth.” Mickey explained, opening the cupboard below the sink and pulling the blender out.

“Fuck. Okay. That's going to cause problems. Is Nika here yet?” Mandy sighed, wiping her face. 

“Not just yet. She and Lana were picking up nappies.” Mickey said, leaning against the bench to watch her stress. 

“Shit. Okay, dinner might be a little later than planned.” Mandy groaned, yanking the fridge open violently. 

“Mandy, calm down. Deep breaths.” Mickey said. “It's just us. No one's expecting restaurant quality. If you cooked up some chicken and chips we'd be happy.”

“I know. I just- I like cooking my meals right. I'm not serving you guys bullshit food.” Mandy sighed. “I guess I could take a quick break now that Lucy's back.” 

“See? Come on. Have a drink and get back to it later.” Mickey smiled, returning to the lounge where Lucy and the kids were opening their Christmas presents. 

“What are you doing?! Those presents are for next year!” Mandy cried out dramatically. Steve and Gemma both froze and looked at Mandy, fear written all over their faces. 

“You guys better wrap them back up otherwise you'll be in trouble.” Mickey said seriously, shaking his head in mock disappointment. 

“Mommy, are they joking?” Gemma asked Lucy nervously. 

“Of course they are sweetie.” Lucy laughed, accepting the glass of wine Mandy had just offered her. 

They all sat down together, perched on the arms of chairs or squished onto the small couch, opening presents late and hugging everyone. Svetlana and Nika showed up halfway through, Lana yelling about the douchebag that had just driven into her car, denting the side of it. Nika was calming her down saying that his insurance would pay for it and it was barely a scratch. Everyone was talking and laughing and having drinks and snacks and Mickey was so unbelievably happy. 

“Wait, where's Sam?” Mickey asked suddenly when he realized they weren't here yet. 

“I dunno. They said they'd be here by now.” Carl frowned, checking his phone. “I'll call them.” 

Carl disappeared and Mickey settled into the crook of Ian's arm once more, enjoying the warmth that came from him. Mickey was so excited for midnight. Not only was he finally with all of his family, but tonight was a very important night. He had the ring waiting in his coat pocket for when they went outside. He'd talked it over and over with Mandy, Sam and Carl and they'd all decided together that new years eve would be the best time. Ian was a romantic idiot and would need something dramatic. 

Mickey looked up at Ian and smiled at him. “I love you.” 

Ian looked down at Mickey and rolled his eyes. “Gay.”

“Fucking dick. Tell me you love me back, asshole.” Mickey swatted at him, glaring at him. 

“Love you too, loser.” Ian smiled, kissing him lightly. 

The front door opened up and two voices filled the entryway. Mickey recognised one as Sam but the other one he couldn't place. Everyone fell silent as they waited for them to reveal themselves. 

“Guess who I found in the mall!” Sam called out, walking into their view with someone Mickey had never met before. He was taller than everyone in the room with wavy blonde hair falling in front of his dark eyes. 

“Sebastian?! Holy shit!” Ian gasped, extracting himself from beneath Mickey to go and greet him. 

“No fucking way.” Carl laughed, following Ian for a hug. He gave Sam a quick kiss before looking at Sebastian in amazement. “What the hell are you doing here?” 

“I was at the supermarket getting dinner for one when Sam found me. Invited me for dinner. That's okay right?” He asked, looking around at everyone. 

“Damn fucking straight.” Ian grinned. “So we've got Lucy, Steve, Gemma, Svetlana, Nika, Mandy and my boyfriend, Mickey.” 

“Hey everyone.” He smiled, raising his hand in greeting. 

They all sat down again, Sam going into the kitchen to see Mandy, and started talking. Mickey kept looking at Sebastian, the more he looked at him, the more familiar he seemed. He decided to ask Ian about him. 

“Who is he? How do you know him?” Mickey asked quietly. 

“Sebastian is Mike's best friend. Was best man at the wedding. Why?” 

“I don't know I just… He looks weirdly familiar.” Mickey said thoughtfully, racking his brain to figure out how the fuck he knew him. 

“Huh. Maybe you saw him in the wedding photos when we went to Fiona's?” Ian shrugged. “He's an awesome dude.” 

“Probably.” Mickey sighed, brushing it off. 

“Hey, so you guys work for Jeff Glover right? At Lincoln High?” Sebastian asked suddenly. 

“Yep.” They said in unison. 

“Any idea where he is? I'm an old friend of his and I'd love to catch up.” He said seriously, looking at the two of them a little too intensely. 

“No… We're on break at the moment.” Mickey said slowly, trying to shake the uneasy feeling he was getting from this guy. 

“You want his number?” Ian asked, grabbing his phone. 

“Yes, please. That would be amazing.” Sebastian smiled. 

Mickey was about to say that maybe it wasn't a good idea when Mandy and Sam walked out yelling about dinner and for them all to get the fuck up. Mickey made a mental note to ask Ian about him later, completely forgetting all about it once he saw the amazing meal Mandy had prepared. Beef wellington with all kinds of veges. They all sat down for dinner, laughing the night away until midnight slowly rolled around and it was time for them to go outside. 

A few fences over was another family having a barbeque, of all things, and laughing loudly. Mickey had a nice buzz going from the drinks, calming his frazzled nerves a bit, and he felt good. Ian's warm hand was in his as Carl set up the fireworks and Lucy gave the kids a sparkler each. It was freezing cold but no one cared, everyone was too happy and drunk. Except for Carl who had elected himself as the sober driver. 

“It's almost time to start counting!” Mandy screeched suddenly. “Innnn… Ten! Nine! Eight!”

“Seven!” Mickey yelled, slipping his free hand into his pocket. 

“Six! Ian yelled as Mickey pulled it out subtly.

“Five! Four!” Mickey edged away from Ian slightly. He knew he'd be wanting a kiss as soon as it rolled over into 2016. He wasn't getting it straight away though. 

“Three! Two!”

Mickey dropped to his knee on one, holding the ring up as the sound of fireworks exploded into the night air. Ian turned to kiss Mickey but was confused for the second he didn't know where he had gone. He looked down and his eyes went wide, his mouth dropping open. 

“Happy new year, Ian. Marry me?” Mickey blurted out, the small speech he had prepared going right out the window. 

“YES! Oh my god, a thousand times yes!” He shouted as everyone cheered and clapped. Ian yanked Mickey to his feet and started pecking his face with a dozen kisses all over. “Fuck, Mickey, yes. I fucking love you.” 

“I fucking love you too.” Mickey grinned, grabbing Ian's left hand and sliding the ring on. 

“Oh, Mickey, it's beautiful.” He grinned, holding his finger up for everyone to see. The next hour or so was spent fighting with the kids to get them into bed, drinking champagne and Ian making a tonne of wedding puns. When Carl finally drove everyone home, leaving Mandy and Lucy with Ian and Mickey, Mandy sat down next to Mickey and snuggled up to him.

“Congratulations, Mickey.” Mandy sighed. “I'm so happy for you.” 

“Thank you.” Mickey smiled, grabbing her hand and tangling their fingers together. “Couldn't have done it without you.” 

“Hey, you're the one who proposed.” Mandy snorted. 

“No, that's not what I mean.” Mickey rolled his eyes. “I mean, I couldn't have made it here without you. Couldn't have gotten out of that house, gone back to school… None of it. You made this all possible.”

“You think I could have done it without you? Where would I be without my big brother?” Mandy looked up at him, blinking away the tears shining in her eyes. 

“Best sister ever.” Mickey sighed, resting his head on hers. 

“Only sister.” Mandy shook her head slightly. 

“Am I the best brother though?”

“You know those assholes ain't got nothing on you.” Mandy yawned, sliding down and putting her head in Mickey's lap. 

“True. Not hard to beat.” Mickey yawned as well, relaxing further into the couch. 

“I'm off to bed.” Lucy said suddenly, emerging from the kitchen. “Thank you for an amazing dinner and an amazing first night back.” 

“My pleasure.” Mickey smiled. “It's good to have you back.” 

“Congrats again.” Lucy said sleepily. “Love you guys.” 

“Love you.” They said in unison as she disappeared down the hallway. 

“I should probably get to bed as well.” Mandy groaned, getting up and stretching loudly, her bones all clicking. 

“Thank god. I thought I was going to be stuck there all night.” 

“Fuck you.” Mandy called, already heading down the hall. 

“Ian?”

“In the kitchen.” Ian called out. 

Mickey stumbled in to find him cleaning up. “Leave all that.” Mickey yawned again, exhaustion really starting to take over. He came up behind Ian and slid his hands around his waist, pressing a kiss to the back of his neck. “We'll deal with it in the morning.” 

“I guess.” Ian sighed, leaning back into Mickey's touch. They stood for a moment before heading down the hall to their bedroom, stripping down to their underwear before climbing into bed. Ian didn't waste time in curling his body around Mickey's, holding him close. He stuck his hand out and let the light reflect off of the ring, sending spots of light dancing on the ceiling. 

“You ever gonna stop doing that?” Mickey asked. 

“Probably not.” Ian laughed, low and quiet. 

“You take your pills?” Mickey reminded him suddenly. 

“Fuck.” Ian snapped, letting go of Mickey before climbing out of bed, leaving the space behind him empty and cold. 

“Can you bring me a glass of water?” Mickey cried out dramatically. 

“You're a child.” Ian shook his head when he returned, glass in hand. “Can't believe I said yes.” 

“Neither can I, to be honest.” Mickey said, sitting up and sculling the entire glass. 

“Glad I did though.” Ian said, turning the light off before climbing back into bed. 

“Me too.” Mickey smiled, turning around to face him. 

“Happy new year, Mickey. I love you.” Ian said through the darkness, his lips coming out of nowhere and leaving a kiss on Mickey's lips. 

“Happy new year. I love you too.”

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you so much for reading!! I really hope you enjoyed it. Please please pleeeease tell me what you think!!! Any questions or thoughts, lemme know!!!
> 
> You can find me on tumblr [here](http://www.teamtchucky.tumblr.com) :)


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